What better way to extend my heartfelt felicitations to y'all at this yuletide season for all your wonderful contributions than to let you into my world of Classical Muzik.

Fortunately, Ambrose has blazed the trail(not for the first time) by his cool postings on reggae and Jazz(Nkem is excited). However, I must warn that I may not be as organised as our Ambrose. Do bear with me if I veer off at tangents from Composers to a particular work. Hey, it's supposed to be my nook! Nah! Not really, those of you who appreciate classical are free to join in. Let's talk about symphonies and suites, operas and overtures, Concertos and Concertante etc etc.

I remember with much fondness a lovely lady with a lovely voice called Chinwe Kalu Ogba who used to present the IBS Owerri classical programme "From the masters". Her background information made it possible for one to appreciate the time and effort that goes into arranging an orchestral music.

Arguably the greatest composer in the history of western music, Bach's main achievement lies in his synthesis and advanced development of the primary contrapuntal idiom of the late Baroque, and in the basic tunefullness of his thematic material. He very successfully integrated and expanded upon the harmonic and formal frameworks of the national schools of the time: German, French, Italian & English, while retaining a personal identity and spirit in his large output.

Bach is also known for the numerical symbolism and mathematical exactitude found in his music, and is often regarded as one of the pinnacle geniuses of western civilization, even by those who are not normally involved with music.

Having spent the height of his working life in a Lutheran church position in Leipzig, as both organist and music director, much of his music is overtly religious, while many of his secular works admit religious interpretations on some levels.