Comments on: For the well-tempered pianist

For the well-tempered pianist

Gyan — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 02:26:10 -0800

An interactive Shockwave-based look at Bach's Well-tempered Clavier. Go one level up and explore the entire coverage of Bach.

By: Gyan

Gyan — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 02:26:16 -0800

I linked to the Art of Fugue page couple of years back.

By: Wolfdog

Wolfdog — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 04:02:16 -0800

Ah, I've nearly posted this before, but felt like I would be a doubling your earlier post. Here's another good WTC page, which has all the subjects, countersubject, and various forms they appear in; and a corresponding page for Shostakovich's 20th century homage to Bach, the 24 preludes and fugues of Op. 87. I am always awed by the variety and imagination in the Shostakovich set. And if you know Shostakovich only from his symphonies, the joy & playfulness in Op. 87 is stunning. It is a fun and humbling challenge to try writing your own fugue on one of these subjects.

By: Bugbread

Bugbread — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 05:46:26 -0800

Gyan: Thank you! I've been trying to understand the whole fugue thing for a while, but it seems every site either just has music files and says "listen to how this melody is counterposed by the contrapunct tetrad baritones within the diadic stanzas", or describes very well what is going on, but without any music and without any visual aids. Now I can see and hear what the hell they're talking about, and it finally makes some sense.

By: Wolfdog

Wolfdog — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 06:16:55 -0800

Complete (free) PDF and musictex scores of Kunst der Fuge. Selected preludes and fugues from WTC in postscript/pdf/lilypond.

By: languagehat

languagehat — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 06:24:18 -0800

Fantastic. Thanks, Gyan.

By: ao4047

ao4047 — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 06:42:48 -0800

Another aspect of fugues - esp for piano - is the challenge to the performer to shape the phrasing of each 'voice' in the fugue so it sounds like three separate sound sources. I think it's captivating and notoriously difficult to spread 3 different voices over 2 hands. Well-tempered Clavier and Hanon's Virtuoso Pianist 4EVAR!

By: cribcage

cribcage — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 08:11:57 -0800

Ditto "thanks." Good post.

By: QuietDesperation

QuietDesperation — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 09:06:48 -0800

Thanks for this. Fascinating and rich in detail, albeit a bit bloodless. Where is the Donald Tovey of the Web?

By: Lynsey

Lynsey — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 09:13:45 -0800

Listening to WTC right now as Monday morning unfolds. Thanks for the unexpected pleasure!

By: Busithoth

Busithoth — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 10:54:05 -0800

This is amazing, and the worst thing for me to have seen before I was to leave the apartment. Merci Infiniment

By: LooseFilter

LooseFilter — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 11:46:07 -0800

Many thanks! A really amazing site, I'll definitely be able to use this with my students, too.

By: Eideteker

Eideteker — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 15:16:23 -0800

I didn't see this before I made my FPP!

By: fvox13

fvox13 — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 20:12:34 -0800

Bach's contribution to the literature is truly amazing. Even though there are other composers who are arguably better, it doesn't get much better than Bach if you're looking for Baroque. Good post!!

By: casconed

casconed — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 15:20:04 -0800

Scores of metafilter-reading former piano students are shuddering now as they remember grueling hours spent trying to master the WTC (and hanon too, ao4047).