Bach: a detailed informative biography
巴赫的一生：职业生涯（二）
By  Michael and Lawrence Sartorius
王力舟 校对
「
魏玛
1703
」
While awaiting the completion of the organ at Arnstadt, Sebastian was offered, and accepted the post of violinist in the small chamber orchestra of Duke Johann Ernst, the younger brother of the Duke of Weimar. At Lüneburg he had already experienced church choir music, violin, continuo and organ playing, as well as musical composition and performance in the French style.
在阿恩施塔特（Arnstadt）等候管风琴完工的期间，巴赫接受了约翰.恩斯特（Johann Ernst）公爵的邀请，加入他的规模有限的室内乐团作为一名小提琴师。约翰.恩斯特公爵是魏玛公爵的弟弟。巴赫在吕讷堡（Lüneburg）的时候在教堂合唱音乐、小提琴、通奏低音、管风琴演奏、以及谱曲和法国风格的音乐创作和表演等各个方面积累了丰富的经验。
 Here at Weimar he now came into contact with Italian instrumental music, and acted as deputy to the aging Court Organist, Effler, an old friend of the Bach family, thus having a chance to keep his organ playing in practice. His stay here was short, but he was to return later.
正是在魏玛，巴赫开始接触意大利器乐，并且身兼巴赫家族的老朋友、上了年纪的宫廷风琴师埃弗勒（Effler）的副手，因而有机会不断练习演奏管风琴。巴赫在这里停留的时间不长，但是将来还会回来。
In July 1703 the Arnstadt Town Council invited young Bach to try out the newly finished organ in the 'New Church', so called as it had been almost totally rebuilt having been seriously damaged by fire. He so impressed the people of Arnstadt with his brilliant playing at the dedication that he was immediately offered the post of organist on very favorable terms.
1703年七月，阿恩施塔特市政厅邀请年轻的巴赫在“新教堂”试弹新近完工的管风琴，被称作“新教堂”是因为它在被火灾严重焚毁之后进行了重建。巴赫的精彩演奏为阿恩施塔特的民众留下了深刻的印象，阿恩施塔特立即用丰厚的条件聘他做风琴师。
「
阿恩施塔特
1703-1707
」
At the end of 1703, 18-year-old Sebastian took up his post at the small town of Arnstadt, no doubt thrilled at having his own relatively large organ of two manuals and 23 speaking stops, and the responsibility of providing music for his own congregation. Though the present organ is not "Bach's", the original manuals, stops and pedals of Bach's organ are displayed in the Palm Haus Museum of this quiet historic little town, where the house in which Bach lodged can also be seen.
1703年底，18岁的巴赫在小镇阿恩施塔特走马上任。巴赫为拥有属于自己的相对较大的管风琴激动不已，这个管风琴可是有着两个键盘和23个音栓，而且还肩负为自己的会众提供音乐的重任。虽然现在的管风琴不是巴赫当初使用的，但巴赫当初使用过的管风琴的键盘、音栓、和踏板仍然在这个古老平静的小镇上的帕慕.豪斯博物馆（Palm Haus Museum）展出，甚至巴赫曾经居住过的房子也还可以看到。
In October 1705, the Church Council granted Bach leave to visit the north-German city of Lübeck to hear the great organist, Dietrich Buxtehude. In Lübeck he took every chance to hear Buxtehude play, and to attend the famous evening concerts in the Marienkirche when Buxtehude's church cantatas were performed. Bach was so fascinated by these concerts, and by his discussions on the arts with the great master, that he remained in Lübeck over Christmas until the following February.
1705年10月，教会理事会允许巴赫休假去德国北部的城市吕贝克（Lübeck）聆听风琴大师迪特里克·布克斯特胡德（Dietrich Buxtehude）的表演。在吕贝克，巴赫抓住所有的机会欣赏迪特里克的演奏，还出席迪特里克在著名的圣.玛丽大教堂（Marienkirche）的晚间音乐会上表演的教堂康塔塔。巴赫对这些音乐会和他跟大师有关艺术的讨论非常着迷，以至于他在吕贝克度过了在圣诞节，到第二年的二月份才离开。
He returned to Arnstadt three months late, having also visited Reincken in Hamburg and Böhm in Lüneburg on the way, full of new ideas and enthusiasm which he immediately put into practice in his playing. The congregation however was completely surprised and bewildered by his new musical ideas: there was considerable confusion during the singing of the chorales, caused by his "surprising variations and irrelevant ornaments which obliterate the melody and confuse the congregation".
巴赫在回程上又顺道在汉堡拜访了莱茵肯（Reincken）、在吕讷堡（Lüneburg）拜访了伯姆（Böhm），比原计划晚了三个月才回到阿恩施塔特，随即把极大的热情和全新的想法投入到排练和演出。然而，教会的会众对新的音乐理念感到震惊和不知所措：赞美诗的演唱让听众相当困惑，因为巴赫的“让人瞠目结舌的变奏和无关的装饰音使旋律变得陌生，让会众无所适从”。
The Church Council resolved to reprimand Bach on his 'strange sounds' during the services, and they also asked him to explain the unauthorized extension of his leave in Lübeck. Bach did not attempt to justify himself before what must have seemed to him a group of narrow minded and conservative old gentlemen; yet the Council, knowing how skilled his playing was, decided to treat their young and impetuous organist with leniency.
教会理事会因为巴赫在敬拜时的“奇异的音响效果”决定对他进行警告，并要求他解释为什么在出访吕贝克期间未经允许而逾期不归。巴赫没有对那群保守的心胸狭窄的老家伙们做出任何辩解；因为巴赫出类拔萃的演奏技巧，最终理事会还是决定对这位年轻的不知深浅的风琴师做出宽大处理。
However, new conflicts soon arose when Bach, citing a clause in his contract, refused to work any longer with the undisciplined boys' choir which he had been required to train for the sake of Council economy. For this the Council further reprimanded him and also added the complaint that he had been "entertaining a strange damsel" to music in organ loft of the church. The young lady was probably his cousin, Maria Barbara, whom he was later to marry.
但是新的矛盾很快又出现了。为了节约开支，理事会要求巴赫指导排练缺乏训练的儿童唱诗班，巴赫根据工作合约里的条款拒绝这项任务。理事会为此再次警告巴赫，并且加上一条，巴赫一直在教会管风琴的阁楼上用音乐“讨好一位陌生的姑娘”，那位姑娘是巴赫的堂妹，玛丽亚.芭芭拉，后来嫁给了他。
Thus, what had been an exciting and promising start at Arnstadt, had now turned into recriminations and disputes; Bach no doubt decided it would be better to look around for somewhere new.At the end of 1706, he heard that the organist to the town of Mühlhausen had died. Knowing that Mühlhausen had a long musical tradition, he applied for the post.
所以，在阿恩施塔特原本令人激动和前程无量的开端现在变成了互相指责和争吵，毫无悬念巴赫决定在其它地方另谋高就。1706年底，巴赫听说米尔豪森的风琴师去世了。早就听说米尔豪森的音乐传统源远流长，巴赫对这个空缺提出了申请。
And after yet another very successful audition at the imposing cathedral-like St Blasius Church on Easter Sunday 1707, he was accepted, again on very favorable terms. So in June 1707 he returned the keys of his office to the Arnstadt Council and left quietly with his few belongings for Mühlhausen.
1707年的复活节礼拜天，巴赫在如同圣母院一般雄伟的圣.布拉休斯（St Blasius）教堂进行了面试，面试非常成功，巴赫得到了这个工作，而且酬薪非常丰盛。1707年6月，巴赫把钥匙交还给了阿恩施塔特的理事会，带着自己为数不多的行李，悄悄地离开当地前往米尔豪森。
「
米尔豪森
1707-1708
」
Bach arrived at Mühlhausen, a small Thuringian town proud of its ancient foundation and independence, to take up the post of organist to the town. Unfortunately, a quarter of the whole town had recently been devastated by fire; it was difficult for him to find suitable dwellings, and he was thus forced to pay a high rent. Nevertheless, shortly after his arrival, he brought his cousin Maria Barbara from Arnstadt, and on October 17th 1707 he married her at the small church in the picturesque little village of Dornheim. Maria Barbara came of a branch of the musical Bach family, her father being organist at Gehren.
巴赫来到图林根的小镇米尔豪森（Mühlhausen）出任当地的风琴师，小镇为自己悠久的历史和独立深感自豪。不幸的是，由于整个城市的四分之一毁于不久前的一场大火，巴赫很难找到一个合适的落脚之处，只好支付了昂贵的租金（才找到住处）。来到这里没几天，巴赫就把自己的表妹玛丽亚.芭芭拉（Maria Barbara）从阿恩施塔特接了过来。1707年10月17日，在风景如画的多尔恩海姆（Dornheim）的一个小教堂里，巴赫和玛丽亚喜结良缘。玛丽亚.芭芭拉来自具有音乐传统的巴赫家族的另外一个分支，她的父亲在格伦（Gehren）任风琴师。
By now Bach had high ideals for the church music of Germany, and to start with, he began organizing the rather poor facilities of Mühlhausen; he began by making a large collection of the best German music available, including some of his own, and set about training the choir and a newly created orchestra to play the music.
这个时候巴赫对德国的宗教音乐有了很好的设想，而且着手把米尔豪森当地的简陋的设施利用起来。巴赫把最优秀的德国音乐收集在一起，其中也包括自己的作品，然后开始唱诗班的排练，并且新组建了一个交响乐队进行伴奏。
The first result of these efforts was his cantata 'Gott ist mein König' (BWV 71), given in hitherto unknown splendor in the spacious Marienkirche to celebrate the inauguration of the Town Council in February 1708. This success gave Bach the courage to put in a long and detailed report, proposing a complete renovation and improvement of the organ in the St Blasiuskirche. The Council agreed to carry out the renovation and improvements, and Bach was given the task of supervising the work, for not only was he now a brilliant player, he had also become an expert on the construction of organs.
这些努力最初的结果包括他的颂歌《上帝是我的王》（BWV 71），1720年2月被用来庆祝镇议会就职典礼，演出是在宽敞的圣母教堂，整个过程是前所未有的辉煌。演出的成功让巴赫信心暴涨，写了一个很长很详细的报告，建议对圣布莱斯教堂（St Blasiuskirche）的管风琴进行全面装修和改进。镇议会同意了这个建议，并且任命巴赫负责这项工作，这个决定不仅仅因为巴赫是一位杰出的风琴师，还因为巴赫在制造管风琴方面也非常在行。
However, before the organ was completed, a religious controversy arose in Mühlhausen between the orthodox Lutherans, who were lovers of music, and the Pietists, who were strict puritans and distrusted art and music. Bach was apprehensive of the latter's growing influence, in addition to the fact that his immediate superior was a Pietist. Music in Mühlhausen seemed to be in a state of decay, and so once more he looked around for more promising possibilities.
但是，管风琴还没完工，正宗路德派和虔诚派之间的宗教冲突在米尔豪森爆发了，路德派的教徒喜欢音乐，但是由严格的清教徒组成的虔诚派却反对艺术和音乐。巴赫的顶头上司就是虔诚派的信徒，而且虔诚派的影响不断扩大，所有这些让巴赫深感忧虑。音乐在米尔豪森逐渐失去地位，所以巴赫又开始寻找更有作为的职位。
Former contacts made in Weimar were now useful; the Duke of Weimar offered him a post among his Court chamber musicians, and on June 25, 1708, Bach sent in his letter of resignation to the authorities at Mühlhausen, stating very diplomatically that not only was he finding it difficult to keep a wife on the small salary agreed to on his arrival, but that he could see no chance of realizing his final aim, namely the establishment of a proper church music 'to the glory of God'. The Council had little option but to allow his departure. 
以前在魏玛的老关系现在派上了用场；魏玛公爵让他加入了自己的宫廷室内乐团。1708年6月25日，巴赫向米尔豪森官方递交了辞呈。巴赫在辞呈中非常正式地表示不仅由于当初谈好的微薄的薪水很难供养妻子，而且看不到任何希望可以实现他的最终目标，就是创建适当的教会音乐“来荣耀上帝”。
However, the situation was concluded quite amicably and Bach was asked that he should continue to supervise the rebuilding of the St Blasiuskirche organ. This he did, and some time in 1709 he came over to inaugurate its first performance.
镇议会没有太多选择只好同意巴赫离任。然而，最后结果还是相当友好，巴赫被要求继续负责圣布莱斯教堂管风琴的重建。他照办了，1709年巴赫回到这里在完工仪式上首次演奏了新的管风琴。（未完待续）
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