Who Is The Mysterious Magdalena Wilcke?

Author and music researcher Martin Jarvis presents a new historical novel, The Other Bach: The Mysterious Magdalena Wilcke, exploring the life of Anna Magdalena Wilcke, the second wife of Johann Sebastian Bach.

The novel combines historical fiction with Jarvis’s research into eighteenth-century music manuscripts and forensic document analysis. It focuses on Anna Magdalena’s life before her marriage to Bach in 1721, when she was already an accomplished professional musician at the Köthen court, and considers her relationship with the music and creative environment of the Bach household.

“Anna Magdalena Wilcke became Bach’s second wife in 1721. She was a trained and highly regarded musician at the Köthen court. The novel is an attempt to imagine her world and her possible role in the music around her,” Jarvis said.

The book draws from Jarvis’s previous academic work examining the handwriting and origins of music manuscripts associated with Bach, including the Six Unaccompanied Cello Suites. His research formed the basis of his Ph.D. and was featured in the BBC documentary Written by Mrs. Bach – Music Under the Microscope.

Jarvis is a Professorial Fellow at Charles Darwin University in Australia. His background includes music performance, forensic document examination, and work as an expert witness in legal proceedings.

The Other Bach: The Mysterious Magdalena Wilcke is available now.