Another of Bach’s likely motives is evident in the timing of his visit. He probably arrived in Lübeck in November 1705, just when the rehearsals would be starting for the series of concerts that Buxtehude staged before and during Advent. These concerts, known as Abendmusiken, were ambitious events sponsored by the businessmen of Lübeck. They usually included polychoral works, with performers positioned in the balconies that had been installed shortly after Buxtehude’s appointment at the Marienkirche. Sometimes the concerts also featured singers hired from Hamburg or Kiel. In 1705 the highlight consisted of two concerts honouring the deceased Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I, and the election of his successor, Joseph I. Bach probably attended these performances, which included choirs of singers, trumpeters and timpani, plus scenic tableaux illustrating the topics of the oratorios.

A third reason for Bach’s visit was Buxtehude’s socio-professional status. For someone from a provincial background such as Bach, Buxtehude was a model of successful advancement within the musical profession. In Bach’s homeland of Thuringia, organists tended to be of lowly status, comparable with manual workers or lesser church officials such as sextons. In church music they were subordinate to the cantor, who directed the choir and also acted as a teacher in the adjacent school. By contrast, in north German cities such as Hamburg or Lübeck, the organists were the highest-ranking musicians. Buxtehude exceeded the local cantor in status and pay; he, not the cantor, was in charge of prestigious events such as the Abendmusiken. In the nearby city of Hamburg, Johann Adam Reincken was organist of the Katherinekirche and was famous for being the best-paid musician in the city. He even refused to take on some clerical duties at the church, seeing them as alien to his profession. Of course, some vestiges of lower status remained; newly appointed organists were often expected to marry the daughter of their predecessor, in a continuation of the practice of marrying into a trade. But on the whole, Buxtehude would have set an inspiring example to a young virtuoso such as Bach, showing that social and professional advancement did not require academic qualifications but could be attained through sheer ability at the keyboard.