Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur, has named German composer Johann Sebastian Bach as his greatest musician of all time.
The SpaceX and Tesla CEO described the late composer as “the Shakespeare of music”, praising his enduring musical legacy.
In a post on X, Musk wrote: “Johann Sebastian Bach is the Shakespeare of music. Best there ever was.”
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) was a German composer, organist, keyboardist and violinist widely regarded as one of the greatest figures in Western classical music.
His extensive body of work comprises more than 1,000 compositions spanning many of the musical forms of his time. Among his best-known works are the Brandenburg Concertos, the Cello Suites, the Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin, the Goldberg Variations and The Well-Tempered Clavier. His celebrated compositions also include the organ work Toccata and Fugue in D minor, the St Matthew Passion and the Mass in B minor.
Bach was particularly renowned for his mastery of counterpoint, a compositional technique in which multiple independent melodic lines are woven together to create intricate musical textures.
His influence extended beyond his lifetime, inspiring generations of composers and musicians. Polish composer and pianist Frédéric Chopin, for instance, deeply admired Bach and encouraged his pupils to study his works. Chopin reportedly advised one of his students to “Play Bach, always play Bach”, reflecting his belief in the composer's enduring value for musical study and piano performance.
Centuries after his death, Bach's compositions remain central to classical music, celebrated for their technical brilliance, complexity and lasting artistic influence.
