To mark the Bach Year of 2000, the 250th anniversary of Johann Sebastian Bach's death, I performed the complete organ works of Bach in a cycle of eighteen one-hour recitals in Blanche Anderson Moore Hall, the University of Michigan School of Music. I also taught a graduate seminar on Bach performance concurrently with the recital series and presented individual Bach recitals, workshops and masterclasses throughout North America. Planning to perform the complete organ works of Bach presented an interesting challenge: exactly which works should I play? After more than 250 years, it is by no means certain exactly what Bach composed. For this series, I generally relied on the newly-published Bach Werke Verzeichnis, Kleine Ausgabe (Breitkopf & Härtel, 1998). This authoritative revision of Wolfgang Schmieder's Bach catalog presents a consensus of a number of leading Bach scholars' recent research. I programmed all works identified as authentic in this new catalog, including several which had been authenticated only recently. I also included the chorales of the newly-discovered Rudorff Collection, which had yet to be assigned numbers in the BWV listing. On the other hand, several works once thought to be by Bach have now been identified as spurious, and so were not programmed on the series (for example, the Eight "Little" Preludes and Fugues--fine music, but almost certainly not by Bach). Even guided by the best current scholarship, I was left with a handful of "dubious" works, pieces that might or might not be by J. S. Bach. I made my personal choices as to which of these to play, including especially those long associated with the Bach "canon," such as the Pedal-Exercitium, the Kleines harmonisches Labyrinth, and the "Gigue" Fugue. Ultimately, though, my programming represented only a snapshot of current Bach research. No doubt future performers of the complete works will make some different choices.

Engraving by F. W. Bollinger, 1802

I tried to construct eighteen "audience-friendly" programs, each planned as a complete unit, so that someone attending just one or two concerts would still experience the rich variety of Bach's genius. With the exception of Program 11 (the great pedaliter settings of Clavierübung, Volume III), each program followed a similar plan, beginning and ending with a free work (for example, a prelude and fugue, fantasia or concerto) and featuring several contrasting groups of chorale-based pieces separated by one or more additional free works. I am grateful to the University of Michigan School of Music and the Office of Vice President for Research for the grants which supported my Bach Year events. My work was also assisted by two sabbatical leaves. During my sabbatical in 1993, I recorded Clavierübung, Volume III and began organizing the repertoire, research and other materials. During my sabbatical in fall, 1999, I continued learning and rehearsing the 266 Bach organ works and completed preparations for my Bach recitals, workshops, masterclasses and seminar.