The set of ‘eight short preludes and fugues’ discussed here date to the period 1730–50 (Williams) but for stylistic reasons are no longer judged to be the work of J.S. Bach himself (Durr, Lohmann, William). However, they still retain their place in the Bach Werke Verzeichnis (BWV), the official J.S. Bach catalogue, as numbers 553–560.
Sources
It has been suggested that the scribe of ‘the eight’ was Bach’s great-nephew J.C.G. Bach (1747–1814) and that subsequently the whole volume was in the possession of J.S. Bach’s last pupil J.C. Kittel (1732–1809) (Lohmann, Williams). The manuscript volume was latterly owned by Georg Poelchau (1773–1836) who was an avid collector of Bach materials. Since 1841 the manuscript has been in the collection of the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin as ‘D-B Mus.ms. Bach P 281’.
The same paper used for ‘the eight’ is also found in three sections of another Bach manuscript, ‘D-B Mus.ms. Bach P 803’, one of whose scribes has been identified as J.L. Krebs (1713–80) (Williams), a pupil of Bach.
A now-lost manuscript of ‘the eight’ – scribe unknown – was once owned by Bach biographer J.N. Forkel (1749–1818) and then by a promoter of Bach’s work F.C. Griepenkerl (1782–1849). It was used to produce the 1852 C.F. Peters (Leipzig) edition of ‘the eight’ and is likely to have been a copy of Poelchau’s manuscript. (Durr)
Style
Given that nowadays ‘the eight’ is merely “attributed” to Bach commentators have tried to identify alternative composers but with no clear consensus emerging beyond stylistic traits, e.g. Italian concerto (no.1); durezze (no.3); neo-galant (no. 4); toccata (no.5); southern fugal styles (nos. 1, 4, & 5). (Durr, Lohmann, Williams).
My own hypothesis (2022) is that ‘the eight’ is likely to be Bach-student work born out of the partimento method of teaching composition at the keyboard, as used by Bach. Broadly speaking, this method employs an independent given bass line containing sufficient elements for the student to create a complete composition. (Milka). In ‘the eight’ can be found some (not all) motifs that are strongly familiar with some of those in a c.1734 partimento collection “L’A.B.C. Musical” by Gottfried Kirchhoff (1685–1746), a composer-organist known personally to Bach (Milka); see two examples below. My hypothesis implies that there will be other (as-yet unidentified) generative sources for ‘the eight’.
In addition it is worth noting that there is evidence of a clear intention behind the organisation of ‘the eight’, i.e. that it is not an ‘ad hoc’ assembly. This is because the sequence of pieces in ‘the eight’ is in keeping with other early eighteenth-century keyboard collections with content ordered by ascending key progression and the pairing of major and minors keys, although in ‘the eight’ only one key is paired. Perhaps ‘the eight’ is an incomplete Bach-student project?
Performance
The attraction of this collection for me is not only that individual movements are useful in liturgical settings but also that the set, when played complete, makes a pleasing and varied baroque-period concert item.
In preparing these recordings of ‘the eight’ I have taken account of Baroque-period theory concerning the emotional character (affekt) of different musical keys, here pursuing a 1713 affekt-theory of the Hamburg composer and influential theorist Johann Mattheson (1681–1764). The instrument I am using is tuned according to the Baroque Werckmeister III system.
Listen
- BWV 553: Prelude and Fugue in C
Mattheson’s thoughts on C-major: … it has a rather hearty and confident character suited to the expression of joy.
- BWVV 554: Prelude & Fugue in Dm
Mattheson’s thoughts on D-minor: … somewhat devout and calm, at the same time affecting, agreeable, and expressive of contentment … for the furthering of devotion in the church … ‘skipping’ music must not be written in it, whereas flowing music will be very successful.
- WV 555: Prelude & Fugue in Em
Mattheson’s thoughts on E-minor: … whatever one may do with it, it will remain pensive, profound, sad, and expressive of grief in such a way that some chance of consolation remains.
- BWV 556: Prelude & Fugue in F
Mattheson’s thoughts on F-major: … capable of expressing the most beautiful sentiments … generosity, steadfastness, love, or whatever else may be high on the list of virtues. It is natural and unforced when used to express such affects. It compares to a handsome person who looks good whatever he may do and who has, as the French say, ‘bonne grace’.
- BWV 557: Prelude & Fugue in G
Mattheson’s thoughts on G-major: … insinuating and persuasive … somewhat brilliant and suited to the expression of serious as well as joyful affects.
- BWV 558: Prelude & Fugue in Gm
Mattheson’s thoughts on G-minor: … almost the most beautiful key … rather serious combined with spirited loveliness, uncommon grace and affability … it lends itself well and flexibly both to moderate plaintiveness and tempered joy.
- BWV 559: Prelude & Fugue in Am
Mattheson’s thoughts on A-minor: … somewhat plaintive, modest and relaxed … relaxing but not disagreeably so, These are qualities not immediately apparent in the free Stylus phantasticus manner of the prelude nor in the confident duple pulse of the fugue. While this music is neither ‘relaxed’ nor particularly ‘relaxing’ it has a plaintive quality, heightened by the sharp intonation of A minor in the baroque Werckmeister III temperament (tuning) of the instrument used here.
- BWV 560: Prelude & Fugue in Bb
Mattheson’s thoughts on Bb-major: … very diverting and showy … it can pass as both magnificent and graceful … it elevates the soul to greater things.
References
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- ‘Johann Christoph Georg Bach‘. The New Grove Bach Family by Christoph Wolff (London: MacMillan, 1983). “Bach Cantatas Website” (2006). Online resource accessed 22 October 2022.
- D-B Mus.ms. Bach P 281. Online resource accessed 25 October 2022.
- Alfred Duur. ‘Introduction’. “Johann Sebastian Bach: Acht kleine Präludien und Fugen”. Series: Barenreitr Urtext. (Kassel ; London : Bärenreiter 1990)
- ‘Eight Short Preludes and Fugues‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 20 October 2022.
- ‘Johann Nikolaus Forkel’. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 20 October 2022.Friedrich Konrad Griepenkerl. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 20 October 2022.
- ‘Gottfried Kirchhoff‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 22 October 2022. [In German]
- Johann Ludwig Krebs. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 20 October 2022.
- Heinz Lohmann. ‘Introductory Notes’. “Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750): 8 Little Preludes and Fugues BWV 553-560″. (Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1974). [ Publisher’s inspection copy. Online resource, accessed 29 Oct0ber 2022. ]
- ‘Johann Mattheson‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 20 October 2022.
- Johann Mattheson. Das Neu-Eröffnete Orchestre (Hamburg: Benjamin Schillers Witwe, 1713), as discussed in Hans Lenneberg ‘Johann Mattheson on Affect and Rhetoric in Music’. Journal of Music Theory, Vol. 2, No. 2 (Nov., 1958), pp. 193-236. 234-36. (Online resource from Internet Archive, accessed 13 November 2022.)
- Anatol Milka. ‘Preface to the Facsimile Reproduction of the Original Edition of Gottfried Kirchhoff’s L’A.B.C Musical …‘. Bach (2011) Vol. 42, No. 2, pp. 1-39.
- ‘Partimento‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 22 October 2022.
- ‘Georg Poelchau‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 22 October 2022. [In German]
- Derek Remes (ed). Gottfried Kirchhoff’s L’A. B. C. Musical: a modern pedagogical edition. [ http://www.derekremes.
- William Renwick. The Langloz Manuscript
Fugal Improvisation through Figured Bass (OUP: London, 2020] - ‘Stylus P1hantasticus‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 19 January 2022
- ‘Werckmeister temperament‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 20 October 2022.
- Peter Williams. The Organ Music of J. S. Bach (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003)
- ‘Stylus Phantasticus‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 19 January 2022.
- ‘Johann Christoph Georg Bach‘. The New Grove Bach Family by Christoph Wolff (London: MacMillan, 1983). “Bach Cantatas Website” (2006). Online resource accessed 22 October 2022.
- Technical notes.
– Edition: Johann Sebastian Bach Acht kleine Präludien und Fugen. Series: Barenreitr Urtext. (Kassel ; London : Bärenreiter 1990)
– Temperament: Werckmeister III; pitch A=440
– Organ: Viscount Sonus 60
– Microphone: Zoom Q2N-4K
– Recordings: ©Andrew Pink (2022–23). All rights reserved.
Creative Commons licence: [Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International]
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The following exordia ad missam (tr. preludes to the mass) are short and mostly meditative pieces that I recorded during the UK’s various Covid-related restrictions of 2020–22 for use as part of live-streamed church services. For some of my other lockdown recordings go to: 
Kate Boundy
Luigi Bottazzo
Hedwige Chrétien
William Faulkes
Eugénie-Emilie Juliette Folville (1870–1946)
César Franck
Walter Battison Haynes
Paul HIndemith
Peter Hurford
Jean Langlais
Louis J. A. Lefébure-Wely
Ann Mounsey-Bartholomew 
Max Oesten
Marie Prestat
Blanche Rozan
Léonce de Saint-Martin
Franz Schubert (1797–1828)
Ralph Vaughan Williams
René Vierne
J. S. Bach’s Orgelbüchlein (BWV 599–644) is a collection of short organ pieces that he composed over several decades from 1704 onwards. Bach’s idea was to assemble 164 works in a variety of styles, all based on pre-existing Lutheran hymn-tunes, and arranged according to the Church’s calendar. The collection would serve Bach not only in church services but also in his teaching. Alas, the project remained incomplete at the composer’s death.
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