Prelude in C minor, BWV 999

For other uses, see Prelude in C minor (disambiguation).

	Prelude in C minor BWV 999 Played on harpsichord by Gérard Janot
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Prelude in C Minor, BWV 999), also termed The "Little" Prelude in C Minor, is a piece written by Johann Sebastian Bach sometime between 1717 and 1723.^[1] Though originally composed for Lute-Harpsichord, it has since been adapted for various instruments, including lute, piano and guitar. It is a pedagogical work much in the spirit of The Well-Tempered Clavier, with which it shares musical characteristics. The piece's true authorship fell into question for decades before being proven to be Bach's by publication of Hans Neemann’s J. S. Bach Lautenkompositionen (1931).

History

Lute-harpsichord

The piece's exact year of creation is the subject of extensive speculation. The Oxford Dictionary of Music cites the prelude's similarity to the Well-Tempered Clavier (most notably, the sixteenth-note broken chord patterns anchored by a pedal tone ^[2]), stating, "c minor bwv999 shows an affinity with the ‘48’, and may thus belong to the Cöthen or early Leipzig period".^[3] However, indirect sources, such as IMSLP and Classical Music Archives, place its origin at 1725 and 1720, respectively. These estimates also conflict with the more direct motivic parallels between BWV 999 and Prelude and Fugue in C Major, (BWV 846), which Bach penned in 1722. As Bach left Weimar to become Kapellmeister at Cöthen in 1717, and departed Cöthen to take his position as cantor/music director in Leipzig in 1723,^[4] the uncertainty of dates (wherein the piece was composed between 1717 and 1723) can place it in any one of three locations within Bach's compositional timeline. Initially, analysts were unsure as to whether the prelude was actually composed by Bach, since the only original source discovered was a copy by one of Bach's pupils, Johann Peter Kellner (1705-1772). Analysis contained within Neemann’s J. S. Bach Lautenkompositionen (1931) later confirmed the authorship.

Prelude genre

BWV 999's brief, introductory nature (43 measures), improvisatory feel and reiteration of a defining motif fits squarely within the prelude genre of the early 1710s/20s. Additionally, the shortness of the motif itself follows the conventions of early sixteenth-century prelude. It also served a teaching purpose characteristic of the genre, widely using arpeggiations and technical demands that served students well as an etude. Barbara Russano Hanning describes prelude features and goals: "The typical prelude assigns the player a specific task, so that the piece functions as an etude. In addition, the preludes illustrate different types of keyboard performance conventions and compositional practices."^[5] Such pedagogical traits contribute to the work's longevity; it is still an oft-used educational tool.

Musical characteristics

Motif

First seven measures of BWV 999

Prelude in C Minor is set in 3/4 time. Its central motif consists of intersecting rhythms between the upper and lower voice (what originally would have been the left and right hand). In the right hand, this is a sixteenth rest, followed by a seven-note sixteenth passage that typically arpeggiates an inversion of a triad (ascending and descending from/back to the root), and an alternating sixteenth rest/sixteenth note pattern in the third beat. The left participates by having a pedal tone quarter in the first beat, a rest, then two eighth notes.

Harmony

Measures 8-14 (modulation occurs in m.11-14 [highlighted]).

Contrary to its title and key signature, less than a third of BWV 999 is actually written in C minor. In measure 11, a Secondary leading-tone chord is employed (namely, a diminished F♯ seventh chord) to modulate and lead the ear to G minor, the dominant of the original key. Aside from a turn to G Major (m. 34-38; 42-end), and the reemergence of C Minor (m. 39-41), G minor tonality dominates the piece. Early on, the left hand/upper voice is repeated over several measures, with the left hand providing the only shifting harmonic background. For example, measures 8-10 are exactly the same in the right hand, but descending tones in the left hand create an expansion of tonic harmony.

Publication

The prelude was first published as a keyboard piece, No. 3 of the Twelve Little Preludes, in 1890.^[6]

References

↑ Schulze, Hans-Joachim (1986). The Bach Compendium. Leipzig: Peter Lang. ISBN 3-87626-130-9.
↑ "Prelude and Fugue in C major, BWV 846 (Bach, Johann Sebastian) - IMSLP/Petrucci Music Library: Free Public Domain Sheet Music". imslp.org. Retrieved 2015-12-02.
↑ Wolff, Christoph (2015). "Oxford Dictionary of Music". Johann Sebastian Bach. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
↑ Hanning, Barbara Russano (2014). Concise History of Western Music. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. p. 274. ISBN 978-0-393-92066-6.
↑ Hanning, Barbara Russano (2014). Concise History of Western Music. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. p. 278. ISBN 978-0-393-92066-6.
↑ Ernst Naumann. BGA Vol. 36 (1890), pp. 118–127

Compositions for Organ, Keyboard and Lute by Johann Sebastian Bach

Organ	Fugue in G minor, BWV 131a (doubtful) Sonatas, BWV 525–530 Prelude and Fugue in D major, BWV 532 Fantasia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 537 Toccata and Fugue in D minor ("Dorian"), BWV 538 Toccata and Fugue in F major, BWV 540 Fantasia and Fugue in G minor ("Great"), BWV 542 Prelude and Fugue in A minor, BWV 543 Prelude and Fugue in E minor ("Wedge"), BWV 548 Eight Short Preludes and Fugues, BWV 553–560 (doubtful) Fantasia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 562 Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C major, BWV 564 Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565 Prelude (Toccata) and Fugue in E major, BWV 566 Fugue in G minor ("Little"), BWV 578 Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 582 Orgelbüchlein, BWV 599–644 Schübler Chorales, BWV 645–650 Great Eighteen Chorale Preludes, BWV 651–668 Canonic Variations on "Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her", BWV 769 Neumeister chorales, BWV 1090–1120 Chorale fantasia Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält, BWV 1128

Keyboard	Aria variata alla maniera italiana Capriccio on the departure of a beloved brother Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue English Suites French Suites Goldberg Variations (discography, Gould recording) Inventions and Sinfonias Italian Concerto Overture in the French style Partitas for Keyboard (No. 4, No. 6) Prelude in E minor, BWV 855a Six Little Preludes The Well-Tempered Clavier, BWV 846–893 (Preludes and Fugues in Book I: C major, BWV 846, C♯ minor, BWV 849, G minor, BWV 861; in Book II: C major, BWV 870, F minor, BWV 881)

Lute	Suite in G minor, BWV 995 Suite in E minor, BWV 996 (Bourrée) Prelude, Fugue and Allegro in E♭ major, BWV 998 Prelude in C minor, BWV 999 Fugue in G minor, BWV 1000

Mixed collections	Clavier-Übung III: Prelude and Fugue in E♭ major ("St. Anne"), BWV 552 / Chorale preludes, BWV 669–689 / Duets, BWV 802–805 Concerto arrangements for solo keyboard, BWV 592–597 and 972–987 Klavierbüchlein für Wilhelm Friedemann Bach Twelve Little Preludes

List of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach List of fugal works by Johann Sebastian Bach

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 9/25/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.