There is some evidence that Bach taught the inventions in the following order:
No. 1 in C – no. 4 in Dm – no.7 in Em – no. 8 in F – no. 10 in G – no. 13 in Am – no. 15 in Bm – no. 14 in Bb – no. 12 in A - no. 11 in Gm – no. 9 in Fm – no. 6 in E – no. 5 in Eb – no 3 in D and no.2 in Cm
Here is my take:
No. 1 in C – Mostly a didactic piece (and a compositional tour-de-force) where Bach exemplifies how to write a piece using a single motif. It fits the voice supremely well, so definitely “vocally inspired” piece.
No. 2 in Cm – Another “vocal piece”, this lyrical and beautiful piece is also a canon.
No. 3 in D – Again a vocal piece, and like no. 1 a predominantly didactic piece, where Bach goes out of his way to show how to work to its limits a short (six-notes) motif (bar1 is the motif, bar2 is retrograde inversion, and then through repetition variation and sequencing he goes on to build longer and longer phrases).
No. 4 in Dm – This is a “keyboard piece” exploring a variety of articulations. As in most of the inventions, following the motif through its transformations is always a joy (the motif here is a palindrome and Bach must have liked it, since he used it again as the second part of the subject in Sinfonia no. 2).
No. 5 in Eb – Written in invertible counterpoint. A keyboard piece and an excellent study in mordents.
No. 6 in E – Although this is clearly a vocal piece, it is also – and foremost – a graceful dance in binary form. Check out the “Courante” in the Em Partita for a similar dance.
No. 7 in Em – A beautiful, expressive vocal piece, this is a very good example (intentionally) of the use of long ornamentation as expressive means.
No. 8 in F – A virtuosistic (if we can use the term) keyboard piece, written largely as a canon.
No. 9 in Fm – Another beautiful, slow and lyrical vocal piece. The whole piece is in double counterpoint, once again showing Bach at its pedagogical best. Bach supplied (unusually) lots of slurs in the original autographs.
No. 10 in G – Both a dance (giga) and a keyboard piece, where most of the counterpoint is in the accents. Check out the French suites in Eb and G for similar gigas.
No. 11 in Gm – This is one of the most interesting inventions to analyse, since its countertheme is chromatic. Both a vocal piece (especially if played at a slow tempo) and a keyboard piece. This invention comes quite late in Bach’s teaching scheme, so now he starts mixing several of the elements that in the first inventions (following his teaching order) he kept isolated.
No 12 in A – Another dance (giga) doubling as a keyboard piece. Technically it is the most difficult of the inventions (when played at the fast tempo of a giga). As with the “dance” pieces” the rhythmic elements are given priority.
No. 13 in Am – Both vocal (when taken at a slower tempo) and keyboard piece (when taken at a faster tempo).
No. 14 in Bb – The interplay between the several version of the motif and its inversions are a true delight. This is both a dance and a keyboard piece. One of the few pieces by Bach where rubato is not completely out of place.
No. 15 in Bm – Another dance and vocal (on account of the lyrical section starting on bar 15) piece where the rhythmic elements predominate.
Summary:
No. 1 – Vocal
No. 2 – Vocal
No. 3 – Vocal
No. 4 – Keyboard
No. 5 – Keyboard
No. 6 – Vocal & dance (Courante)
No. 7 – vocal
No. 8 – keyboard
No. 9 – vocal
No. 10 – Dance (giga) & keyboard
No. 11 – vocal & keyboard
No. 12 – Dance (giga) & keyboard
No. 13 – Vocal & keyboard
No. 14 – Dance & keyboard
No. 15 – Dance & vocal.
(And before people get nervous, remember that this is all [informed
]
opinion)
I will come back later for the Sinfonias.
Best wishes,
Bernhard.
Topic: Bach; Inventions and Sinfonias : Another look