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Recently identified organ works by Johann Sebastian Bach have been unveiled and performed in the European nation for the premiere performance in three hundred twenty years.

The nation's Minister of Culture Wolfram Weimer described the unearthing of the two pieces a "important event for the musical community".

They initially attracted notice of a Bach researcher in the early nineties when he was cataloguing historical musical documents at the Brussels archive.

The organ pieces - the Chaconne in D minor and G minor Chaconne - were without dates and without attribution. The researcher spent the subsequent thirty years working to authenticate the identity of the pieces.

Historic Performance

They were performed at the Thomas Church in the German city, where Bach is buried and where he worked as a music director for over two decades.

The two pieces were performed by Dutch musician the renowned organist, who said he was honored to be able to perform them for the premiere in over three centuries.

He said the works were "exceptionally well-crafted" and would be "a valuable resource for organists today, as they are also appropriate for reduced-scale organs".

Historical Significance

They are considered to have been composed early in Bach's career, when he was working as an organ teacher in the community of Arnstadt in the German region.

The researcher, who is now the director of the musical archive in the city, said they exhibited several characteristics distinctive to the composer.

"In terms of style, the compositions also feature elements that can be identified in the composer's creations from that era, but not in those of other musicians," he said.

They are considered to have been transcribed in 1705 by a student of Bach, the historical figure.

At a presentation of the works, the expert said he was "almost completely confident that the composer had composed the two pieces" and they have now been incorporated into the official catalogue of his compositions.