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Johann Sebastian Bach Trivia Questions

How much do you really know about Johann Sebastian Bach? Below are 8 true or false statements. Click each one to reveal the answer and explanation.

1.

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the opera "The Magic Flute."

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Easy
✗ FALSE

"The Magic Flute" is an opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, first performed in 1791, decades after Bach's death in 1750.

2.

Johann Sebastian Bach had 20 children, but only about half survived to adulthood.

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Medium
✓ TRUE

Johann Sebastian Bach fathered 20 children, but only 10 lived past childhood. This is a well-documented fact from his family records.

3.

Johann Sebastian Bach never traveled outside of what is now Germany.

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Medium
✗ FALSE

Bach traveled to Carlsbad (now Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic) in 1720 with Prince Leopold. This town lies outside modern Germany, disproving the claim.

4.

Johann Sebastian Bach wrote the Goldberg Variations, a set of 30 variations for harpsichord.

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Medium
✓ TRUE

The Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, is a work by Bach originally written for harpsichord. It remains one of his most famous keyboard compositions.

5.

Johann Sebastian Bach invented the modern piano.

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Medium
✗ FALSE

The piano was invented around 1700 by Bartolomeo Cristofori in Italy. Bach did compose for early pianos but did not invent them.

6.

Johann Sebastian Bach was a close friend and collaborator of George Frideric Handel.

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Hard
✗ FALSE

Bach and Handel were contemporaries but never met; they lived in different regions and attempted contact twice, but both attempts failed.

7.

Johann Sebastian Bach was the first composer to use the system of equal temperament.

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Hard
✗ FALSE

Bach promoted equal temperament through "The Well-Tempered Clavier," but earlier composers and theorists had already described and used it.

8.

Johann Sebastian Bach was imprisoned for several weeks in 1717 for trying to leave his job in Weimar.

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Hard
✓ TRUE

In 1717, Bach was jailed by the Duke of Weimar for nearly a month after insisting on resigning to take a position at Köthen.

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