Without a doubt, Western classical music developed in part through Christian practices, possibly reaching a peak of sophistication with Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), arguably one of the greatest composers, who lent his influence to the music of later periods.
In the course of modernization and Westernization since the Meiji Era (1868-1912), Japan has accepted this music and religion in its own way.
¡°The acceptance of classical music in Japan has coexisted with a loss of cultural identity, but Japanese people of the era made efforts to absorb and digest the new culture and have made classical music their own language, even though it¡¯s not the mother tongue,¡± says organist and harpsichordist Masato Suzuki, who serves as the principal conductor of Bach Collegium Japan (BCJ). ¡°As generations coming after World War II, our activities happened to coincide with the movement of period performance.¡±
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