On Music and Family Bonds

It’s tempting to think of Johann Sebastian Bach as a singular genius, a force that came out of nowhere. In truth, he was born into a century-old musical family. 

It isn’t easy to document what young Johann was doing in the 1690s, as a child, but music historians believe that his father, a city musician, provided him with a good music education, including music theory and violin. All his uncles were professional musicians, court musicians, and composers. His father’s cousin, a well-known church organist, tutored him on that magnificent instrument.

Johann, the youngest of eight children, was orphaned by the age of ten, and sent to live with the family of his eldest brother, who was a successful church organist. There he studied, performed, and learned by copying music, while his brother taught him to play the clavichord. By the time he was 18, in 1703, Johann was offered his first full-time appointment as a professional musician. The young lad whose family had nurtured him in his musical growth was ready to take wing.

I like to think that family and a home of his own were very important to Bach, orphaned so young. He married as soon as he was financially able; after the death of his first wife, he remarried. Anna Magdalena Bach, his second wife, was a professional soprano. Four of his sons became composers whose work is still performed today.

Musing on Bach, the family that nurtured him and the family he nurtured, my thoughts turned to the families of the Santa Cruz Chorale. I’ve sung with the chorale for more than a decade, along with my spouse, bass Roger Chaffin. During that time, we’ve had several other couples – including soprano Alissa Roedig and bass Lars Johannesson, whose flute duets grace many of our concerts. But that’s just the beginning. 

We have had pairs of sisters, dads and sons, moms and daughters, moms and sons, an aunt and nephew – and our spring 2026 Intern, student Amiel Goodman, is the daughter of longtime tenor Ron Goodman. Truly, the Chorale is home to many musical families.

When my young grandchildren play the piano for me (moderate skill, tremendous enthusiasm) they sit at a venerable grand that once belonged to their great grandpa. I am grateful for the family bonds that keep a musical heritage going across generations. Most often, musical bonds probably just make for happier families. In Germany, at the beginning of the 18^th century, they nurtured a musical immortal, Johann Sebastian Bach.