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Previously unknown organ works by the renowned composer Bach have been revealed and played in Germany for the initial occasion in 320 years.

The nation's Cultural Affairs Minister Wolfram Weimer labeled the unearthing of the pair of works a "significant occasion for the musical community".

They initially attracted notice of Peter Wollny in 1992 when he was organizing historical musical documents at the Belgian royal collection.

The organ pieces - the D minor Chaconne and G minor composition - were dating unknown and without attribution. The researcher spent the subsequent thirty years working to verify the identity of the pieces.

Historic Performance

They were presented at the St Thomas Church in the eastern German municipality, where the composer is buried and where he worked as a cantor for over two decades.

The two pieces were performed by organist from the Netherlands Ton Koopman, who said he was proud to be able to play them for the first time in three hundred twenty years.

He said the works were "exceptionally well-crafted" and would be "a valuable resource for contemporary organ players, as they are also appropriate for smaller organs".

Musical Importance

They are believed to have been created during Bach's formative years, when he was employed as an organ teacher in the town of Arnstadt in central Germany.

The scholar, who is now the head of the Bach research center in Leipzig, said they exhibited several qualities unique to the musical genius.

"Musically, the pieces also include elements that can be found in Bach's compositions from that time, but not in those of any other composer," he said.

They are believed to have been recorded in 1705 by one of Bach's pupils, Salomon Günther John.

At a unveiling of the works, Mr Wollny said he was "virtually certain that Bach had created the two compositions" and they have now been added into the recognized inventory of his works.