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Newly discovered organ works by the musical genius Bach have been presented and played in the central European country for the first time in over three centuries.

Germany's Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer described the unearthing of the two pieces a "important event for the global music scene".

They originally drew interest of a musical scholar in 1992 when he was organizing historical musical documents at the Brussels archive.

The organ works - the Chaconne in D minor and G minor Chaconne - were undated and unsigned. Mr Wollny spent the next 30 years working to verify the origin of the pieces.

Historic Performance

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

The two pieces were performed by Dutch organist the renowned organist, who said he was privileged to be able to present them for the premiere in 320 years.

He said the pieces were "remarkably sophisticated" and would be "a valuable resource for modern musicians, as they are also appropriate for reduced-scale organs".

Historical Significance

They are thought to have been written early in Bach's career, when he was serving as an organ teacher in the community of the German town in central Germany.

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

"Musically, the works also include characteristics that can be identified in Bach's works from that era, but not in those of other musicians," he said.

They are thought to have been written down in the early eighteenth century by a student of Bach, the musical student.

At a presentation of the pieces, the researcher said he was "almost completely confident that Bach had composed the two compositions" and they have now been included into the recognized inventory of his compositions.