Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach

The fifth son of a prominent composer of the Baroque era was born in Weimar in 1714. From a young age, he learned music from his father, and before starting his music studies, he studied philosophy and law.
From 1740-1767, he was a musician at the court of Frederick II, King of Prussia, and in 1768 he replaced Telemann as the music director of five major churches in Hamburg.
It was this artist who contributed to the development of pre-classical forms, being one of the main innovators who replaced the old suite with a sonata. In 1742, he composed 6 Prussian sonatas, and two years later, 6 Württemberg sonatas. Then, from 1780-1787, he wrote five series of sonatas for the piano forte - the direct ancestor of the piano.
He was an incredibly influential musician of his time. He represented the Sturm und Drang style, which emphasized emotional contrasts and partly anticipated classical features. It is also believed that his compositions were written in the galant and rococo styles.
The artist also wrote an important essay on the true art of playing keyboard instruments, which explains how baroque music was played on these instruments. He died in 1788 in Hamburg.