It is difficult to imagine that anyone would ever consider the music of Johann Sebastian Bach overwrought and exaggerated, but this is indeed how many nineteenth century music critics interpreted his work. They labeled this period’s music “baroque,” stemming from the Portuguese word barroco, or “oddly shaped pearl.” Over time, music critics and audiences alike have come to regard Bach’s work as nothing short of genius, and the word baroque has shed its pejorative connotation to simply become the title for…