Bach Prelude and Fugue in G minor, WTC Book 1 (BWV 861)

[pebbli94]

The above link leads to one of my recordings of Bach's Prelude and Fugue in G minor, WTC Book 1. (BWV 861)

Please give constructive criticism and tips on how I can improve.
I made some mistakes along the way, but I hope you will still enjoy it!

P.S- This is my first time posting on the forum:)

[bluemountain]

Great! Since how long do you play the piano?

Ok, a few tips:   (Please, they are really constructive, not personal!!!

1   -   Try not to use pedal at all, since it blurs the clear line always, especially in Bach.
(You should listen to Bach's music a lot to find the clarity and long lines needed!)

2 - Do not be afraid to play the piano!!!!! When playing you are
not hiding yourself, but being an artist, showing the beauty of music!
You should develop your awareness and hearing
on the maximal possible level. That is not possible if you don't find the middle way
between too soft and amorph playing and too rude and hammered playing.
(I think for now you are more close to the soft and amorph one)

3 - try to have unity in Bach, this means one same pulse in the whole piece,
you should develop at first using an external source (an metronome!) one whole
tempo, since sometimes the proportions between the note values are not equal.
(And when you say you want to "feel" the music, do not discard the tempo!!)
(EXTREMELY important is the whole tempo, it is a major issue!!)

4 - in the fugue you are not listening to the separate voices, you are serving
the fugue in one homogenized mass. Try to play the voices separately
(with the same fingers who you play all the voices with!!)
- the whole soprano, then the whole tenor, etc.
After repeating each voice 5 times min, start combining them - Tenor with Soprano
only and etc.

5 - It is great that you do not use the pedal in the fugue as you did in the prelude
as a safety island, but hear everything 'till the end!, almost all of your
phrase endings are brutally cut off!! You should hear every voice till the end!.

6 - in the fuge, try to unite it using one whole tempo, not wherever it's easy
to play fast, and wherever is hard - slow.

7 - Over all, really, you should play more open (more forte)!!!
Do not limit yourself in the range of " p - mf " since it isn't expressive at all,
contrasts are what makes the music itself! Define where is the culmination,
and where is the "tiff punkt" (the softest moment).

8 - Try to open up your mind while playing! Do not think of anything!!,
let your thoughts be, and just hear what you are doing!! I have the feeling
that you are thinking while e.g. playing the recapitulation of the prelude
- " Oh, I want to eat some cake, and that will be great with a cup of tea.
But only if I had a bergamott tea it would be even ... " and so on!! Try
to hear the music instead! Let your thoughts be, don't follow them!


P . s . If you want to play better, you have to play without looking at the clock
and measure your time. if you have to - play the whole day!! And play with
your mind inside the things that you are doing. Permit yourself of turning it
off only when you repeat a passage for a long time (like half an hour), since
you don't want to get mad.



Ok, that was from me, I really hope not to make you feel angry with me
for telling you what I think! But you do have a lot of talent, so there is
on what to work!

Greets!

Ivan Kerekovsky