Bach: Goldberg Variations
Piano Sheet Music
to Download and Print or to View in Mobile Devices
| ID:109

Download & Print |
 View in Mobile Device |
Get unlimited access to the downloadable sheet music of Goldberg Variations by Johann Sebastian Bach and most of the other pieces in the classical piano repertoire. Sign-up for your Piano Street Gold Membership today! |
The relentlessly intricate architecture of the Goldberg Variations still engage scholars after hundreds of years, while the soothing, noble poetry and formidable technical demands of the piece continue to captivate players and listeners. A number of legendary performances of this monumental work have been recorded on piano as well as on harpsichord and organ - two of the most popular and highly regarded ones were recorded on the piano by Glenn Gould in 1955 and 1981. Bach wrote the work with a two-manual harpsichord in mind, which makes the challenge for the pianist even greater – the many hand-crossings, possibly inspired by Scarlatti’s keyboard music, is much easier to perform on two manuals. Johann Nicolaus Forkel wrote in his Bach biography (1802) that the Variations had been commissioned by the Russian Ambassador to Saxony Count Kaiserling, who suffered from insomnia. Goldberg was a young musician, who according to Forkel’s (probably spurious) version of events, was supposed to play from the Variations during the Count’s sleepless nights to cheer him up a little. Rather than just varying the melody of the Aria, the thirty variations are built upon its bass line. Every third variation is a canon at increasing intervals, except the final, thirtieth variation, a so-called quodlibet, mixing a number of popular tunes - including one that goes "Cabbage and turnips have driven me away, had my mother cooked meat, I'd have opted to stay". After this the heavenly Aria with its elusive beauty returns to close the work. |
|
Goldberg variations May 21, 2011, 09:40:22 PM by sxsx
|
I recently started trying to play Bachs goldberg variations, and I am mostly interested in variations 1 and 3, but it is insanely hard for me. I have just a little more than 1 year of piano lessons, and I am not having lessons right now. Should I just continue trying or this is omsething only for more experienced players ?
|
| Read More... | New Comment
|
|
|
Aria (Goldberg) and Nuages Gris February 13, 2011, 07:31:10 PM by fred792k
|
Hello.
I'm quite new to a piano, half a year so far. My repertoire consists of
Träumerei Of Foreign Lands and People Chopin prelude 7 Chopin Largo E-flat major Bach prelude C major Moonlight Sonata mvt. 1.
The next pieces I'm looking at is Goldberg Variations "Aria", and Liszt's Nuages gris. I can play a minute of each of them so far, but am I good enough to finish them both?
|
| Read More... | New Comment
|
|
|
|
|
|
Help with Kirkpatrick edition of Goldberg Variations January 02, 2010, 09:37:36 AM by dtmowns
|
Hello, I've noticed that in this edition, in his modified scores above the original text, sometimes he transposes and flips things to different clefs etc.... but I don't understand sometimes they are actually different notes!
For instance look at page 22 (Variation eight) Bar 20 and see if you can make sense if the alternate text above the original, the notes don't match!
Forgive my ignorance...as I am sure there is an explanation
|
| Read More... | New Comment
|
|
Do you like this piece?
Let the world know and help Piano Street in our mission to promote classical piano music!
Share or bookmark
"Goldberg Variations in G Major by Johann Sebastian Bach" by using the share buttons below:
| What customers say about pianostreet.com: |
"All of my students are members of Pianostreet and many of my teacher colleagues have joined as well.
It is an excellent resource for students and teachers alike and there is very rarely any need to visit another website or music store in search of sheet music."
Andrea Boltresz, piano teacher
Robertson, Australia
Read full letter >> |
"As a frequent user of pianostreet.com I find it easy to navigate, great value for money and very professional. The pieces are all well-graded and the audio is really useful, especially for pieces not heard before. I have recommended the site to many of my friends who play the piano. Keep up the good work."
Paul, Llansannan, UK.
Read full letter >> |
"Wonderful service! [...] I have no reservation in recommending it as a “must” to all pianists, both teachers
and students, amateur and professional."
Read full review >>
Dr. Robert J Keane, pianist
Australia
|
"I was in Poland the past summer to give 2 concerts. At the last minute they requested some Chopin, which I had not brought with me. So, I google-searched for classical downloads and found your site. I was able to print out excellent editions of the pieces I needed within minutes. To find the scores locally would have been inpossible as it was a smaller town, the nearest music store 45 minutes away."
Robert York, pianist
Long Beach, California
Read full letter >> |
"Piano Street has been a wonderful tool to me as both a pianist and a piano teacher. I can browse the collection for pieces I want to play and/or have my students play. The difficulty rating system that Piano Street uses enables me to search by difficulty level for pieces at my students' various playing levels. It is helpful that many of the scores include an audio clip of the piece being played. I have recommended to my advanced students that they also join Piano Street since getting sheet music from there is a much less expensive alternative to ordering and paying for the music.
Steve D. Allen, Ph.D.
Owner/Piano Teacher, Allen Music Studio
Houston, Texas
www.allenmusicstudio.net
Read full letter >> |
Read more customer reviews >>
|
|
|