In the 1960s, Bach got "switched-on." Now, in this wired 250th anniversary of the Baroque composer's death, he's getting switched online.

The Bach Digital Archive (www.bachdigital.org) launches on Friday and will feature most of Bach's existing handwritten scores and never-before-published documents, which have been digitized and made available for the first time to fans and musicologists.

The massive undertaking was sponsored and spearheaded by IBM Germany under the direction of Herbert Herz, along with the Berlin State Library, the Bach Archive, the University of Leipzig, the British Library in London, the Saxon State Library, State and University Library in Dresden, the University of Jena, the TV production company EuroArts and the International Bach Academy in Stuttgart. IBM scientific laboratories also were involved in the development of the virtual library.

"There will be seven complete Bach works when the site launches which comprises 80 pages and more than 80 gigabytes," said IBM Germany spokesperson Anja Reitermann. "In the coming months we'll be putting up more and more."

The seven scores include the Mass in B-minor, the Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 and the French Suites No. 4 and 5.

The majority of Bach's works are stored in the Berlin State Library, and others are coming from libraries, institutions and private collectors from around the world. Accessing these documents in the past has been quite a chore, as they are scattered at these many locations. In addition, the papers are hundreds of years old and any handling of them can be destructive.

"We have to make sure that we are extremely careful with the light," Herz said. "In some cases we are using slides that are existing and sometimes direct from the originals, depending on the status and quality of the autograph."

Visitors to the site can view documents in "before and after" states and learn about the restoration process. In addition, the public is being invited to support the restoration by either making a donation via the Web site or by buying digitized copies of the handwritten works.

The site also will offer details about Bach's life and works, along with information about musical instruments from his time. Future plans include digital distribution of recordings and videos using IBM's EMMS (Electronic Music Management System) program.

"We have already started to digitize the [sounds of] the musical instruments," Herz said. "People will be able to hear actual baroque violins and others from the Bach period."

How It Began

The project got its start when Herz was involved with digitizing the works of Protestant reformer Martin Luther about five years ago.

"I met some people from the Berlin State Library and they told me that the Bach archives are even in a worse condition because of the ink he used and they were deteriorating [rapidly]," Herz recalled. "So they asked if we could help, but at the time the technology wasn't as advanced, nor did we have the time and money."

But the technology did advance, and then Herz faced the daunting task of convincing his corporate bosses and others to take on the project.

"The most complicated process was to convince the private owners," Herz said. "About 3 percent of the works are in private hands and I would say we are taking a 'diplomatic approach' to convince some of them still."

During World War II, many of the documents were taken to Poland from Germany, and there is still an ongoing legal debate as to ownership.

"We convinced [the library in Krakow, Poland] to forget the legal concerns for the project, and in a sense it is a reunification [beyond the works]," Herz said. "This modern technology has the power to overcome such prejudices, which for me is a sensation."

The most important example of this is The Well-Tempered Clavier, one of Bach's most popular compositions. The two parts of this work have been separated since Bach was alive, but thanks to the participation of the British Library, this virtual handwritten document will be in one piece again.

"During the project I not only became a fan of Bach but found out that the only art that is totally valid to be analyzed by a computer is music," said Herz. "If you look and listen to Bach's music, you see it is very much like science."

Nonstop Bach

In conjunction with the opening of the Web site, IBM is sponsoring "24 Hours of Bach," a television special produced by EuroArts that is being broadcast to more than 40 countries, including PBS and NPR stations in the United States. About 400 musicians — including six orchestras, seven ensembles, three choirs, and 40 soloists — will participate, including John Eliot Gardiner, Viktoria Mullova, Bobby McFerrin, Ton Koopman and Georg Christoph Biller.

Highlighting the broadcast will be a performance of Bach's Mass in B-Minor by the Thomaner Choir as part of Leipzig's Bach Festival 2000. Listeners can go to the Bach Digital Archive site and follow the score as the music plays. Other performances on the broadcast will be "Swinging Bach" featuring McFerrin and the Turtle Island Quartet and the Goldberg Variations Part II performed by Daniel Barenboim.

Johann Sebastian Bach died in Leipzig, Germany, on July 28, 1750.