112: E-flat or D-sharp minor?

“Whoever has once felt this wonderful tranquility has comprehended the mysterious spirit that has here expressed all it knew and felt of life in the secret language of tone, and will render Bach the thanks we render only to the great souls to whom it is given to reconcile men with life and bring them peace.” -Schweitzer, Vol. 1

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A prelude in E-flat minor, with a fugue in its enharmonic other. The image attached to this episode is from the Czerny edition, who felt the need to dispense with the enharmonic intrigue, and publish the fugue in E-flat minor.

Is the prelude the most crushingly beautiful thing Bach wrote? The fugue, devoid of the sensitivity found in the prelude, displays the largest repertoire of fugal technique thus far: stretto, inversion, canon in all voices, augmentation— a veritable dictionary of thematic possibilities.

Here, for example, is a passage I find most striking: stretto and strict canon in all voices. First, the theme appears in blue, ascending in perfect fourths, and a moment later, in red, inverts into perfect fifths.

Bach seems to have been fond of this idea (and perhaps the shape of this subject as lending itself to fugal techniques) as he employs it in four voices —nearly at the exact same spot in the fugue— in the fifth contrapuntus in The Art of Fugue:

We heard from Edwin Fischer, ukuleleist Herb Ohta (whose Ukulele Bach Playlist is a trip) and at the end, Pierre Hantai.

Do check out Alfredo Sanchez’ recording on guitar, he’s got a great feel for this music.

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Concepts Covered:

The Well-Tempered Clavier, J.S. Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in E-flat minor / D-sharp minor Expression vs. technical complexity. The prelude, written in E-flat minor, is introspective, harmonically rich. Its fugue, in the enharmonic key of D-sharp minor, moves from emotion to intellect, showcasing the most extensive use of fugal technique seen so far in the cycle: A survey of contrapuntal possibilities. Analysis, early versions such as BWV 853a, history, revisions, and study.