The set of ‘eight short preludes and fugues’ discussed here can be dated 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.
History
The earliest surviving source of ‘the eight’ is contained within a single volume made from five separately copied manuscripts that in total comprise 12 keyboard works.
Since 1841 the manuscript has been in the collection of the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin as ‘D-B Mus.ms. Bach P 281’. Apart from ‘the eight’ the other keyboard works in the Poelchau manuscript are all copies of works reliably by J.S. Bach: BWV 913.2; 718; 916; 735.1.
Paper used for ‘the eight’ (in D-B Mus.ms. Bach P 281) 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
BWV 553–560 makes use of various keyboard forms common in Bach’s time, e.g. Italian concerto (no.1); durezze (no.3); neo-galant (no. 4); toccata (no.5); southern fugal styles (nos. 1, 4, & 5). (Williams).
Performance
The attraction of this collection 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
[sound file coming soon] :::
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.
- 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.)
- ‘Werckmeister temperament‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 20 October 2022.
- Peter Williams. The Organ Music of J. S. Bach (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003)
- ‘Georg Poelchau‘. Wikipedia. Online resource accessed 22 October 2022. [In German]
- ‘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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