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Home > Bach, Johann Sebastian > Fughetta c-moll

Bach, Johann Sebastian : Fughetta c-moll BWV 961

Work Overview

Music ID : 2268
Instrumentation：Piano Solo　
Genre：fuga
Total Playing Time：2 min 00 sec
Copyright：Public Domain

Commentary (2)

Author : Asayama, Natsuko

Last Updated: June 1, 2008
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Note: This article is automatically translated from the original Japanese text. The author of the original work did not supervise this translation.

Due to its ambiguous transmission history, it is difficult to definitively classify this work as spurious or authentic; however, its musical content strongly suggests it is a work by J. S. Bach.

The work is divided into three sections. In the exposition, after two voices present the complete subject, an interlude leads to a cadence in the relative major, E-flat major, in measures 10-11. The middle section continuously develops the first half of the subject, eventually reaching B-flat major and F minor, adorned with sixteenth notes. A perfect cadence in F minor occurs in measures 18-19, marking the turning point of the fugue. Thereafter, the cantabile atmosphere is enhanced again with ornaments and sixteenth notes, and in the final three measures, this sixteenth-note motive finally appears in the left hand as well.

Although its structure is concise, it skillfully combines three types of rhythms: eighth-note triplets, sixteenth-note sextuplets, and quarter note + eighth note, resulting in an expressive fugue.

Furthermore, one of the manuscript sources transmitting this fugue bears a dedication to Prince Karl Lichnowsky, a prominent patron of Mozart and Beethoven. This manuscript also contains the Inventions and Sinfonias. It is believed to have been created during the period when the Prince was a law student at the University of Göttingen. At that time, J. N. Forkel, a Bach scholar, taught at the University of Göttingen, and the Prince deepened his knowledge of Bach and collected his works through Forkel.

Writer: Asayama, Natsuko

Author : Ooi, Kazurou

Last Updated: November 20, 2023
[Open]
Note: This article is automatically translated from the original Japanese text. The author of the original work did not supervise this translation.

While the appropriate tempo is not definitively clear, observing the sixteenth notes and trills suggests it is not an extremely fast piece, and consequently, it may often be performed with solemnity. Indeed, many video recordings feature a relatively leisurely tempo. The theme (subject) is considered to begin from measure 1 and extend to E-flat on the first beat of measure 4.

A common pitfall in this fugue is that the lines tend to sound very rigid, the cause of which is playing the dynamics of the lines too flatly.

This is even more noticeable at a leisurely tempo.

Therefore, let us begin by shaping the theme. While this is the author's personal opinion, I believe the peak point within measures 1-4 is between the third and fourth beats of measure 2. Applying a gradual diminuendo from that point allows for a smooth flow.

The challenge lies in how to handle the ascending and descending figures in measure 1. There are two approaches:

  • The first approach is to divide this theme into two parts. In this case, the first part would begin from the first beat of measure 1 and extend to C, the last note of the first beat of measure 2. A break is made here. In this scenario, A-flat in measure 1 is treated as the first peak, and a diminuendo is applied from there to C in measure 2. Then, starting anew from the second beat of measure 2, a slightly louder volume, approximately mezzo forte, is applied, gradually decreasing so that E-flat in measure 4 becomes p.
  • The other approach is to treat this theme as a single, undivided entity, and gradually increase the volume from measure 1, regardless of ascending or descending figures, with the goal being the third to fourth beats of measure 2.
Writer: Ooi, Kazurou
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