J. S. BACH WAS BORN THIS DAY

Here is something he wrote about his work:

I want to demonstrate to the world the architecture of a new and beautiful social commonwealth.  Each instrument in counterpoint, and as many contrapuntal parts as there are instruments.  It is the enlightened self-discipline of the various parts, each voluntarily imposing on itself the limits of its individual freedom for the well-being of the community.  That is my message: not the autocracy of a single, stubborn melody on the one hand, nor the anarchy of unchecked noise on the other.  No, a delicate balance between the two, an enlightened freedom.  The science of my art, the art of my science, the harmony of the stars in the heavens, the yearning for brotherhood in the heart of man: this is the secret of my music.