Bach - Prelude and Fugue in E major, BWV854 (WTC I)

[andhow04]

the prelude and fugue in e major from the first book.
the prelude is one of those totally charming bach pastorals. i sometimes play it faster but i guess iw as in a reflective mood this morning.
the fugue is very tricky, because it has long lines of running 16th notes that you have to redistribute between the hands often. it has a great rhytmic vitality and is fun to play but the slightest slip up is the end of that...

( 8 )

[alessandro]

Even if I like a piece that is posted in this section, I often don't "reply" to express my feelings.   I would like to apologize for all the times that I listened, enjoyed, and didn't react and grab this occasion to do so to express my admiration an gratitude for all this beautiful music and the often very "well-cared for" quality of the recordings of those experiences.   Bravo and thank you to you, Andhow04 (and to Rachfan).

I like Bach a lot.   And I like a lot your "audio" posts.  I'm full of admiration for your interpretation. I'm not ready at all to tackle all Bach and you confirm in a certain way by stating that this fugue is (and probably not only) technically demanding.   (I really would like to play him more Bach but I'm far from able to tackle the pieces I want to play ; I think that Bach's music in particular is a music of "study" more than any other composer, it needs 'study with a teacher' and analyse to get out of the music as much as possible)...      

I enjoyed both prelude and fugue a lot.   They sound sufficiently "finished", they sound neat and clear.   They are fresh, no boring or dull spots.  And they have personality.  An interpretation of a true craftmanship.  Congratulations and thank you, again.

.      

[scottmcc]

I agree.  I always like hearing your Bach, and at this rate you will have the entire wtc posted pretty soon!  Keep it up, I appreciate it.

Alessandro, I definitely agree with you that Bach demands intense study, but you can certainly work on a little bit over a long time and benefit from it.  I've been playing with the same fugue for well over a year and I'm still nowhere near "done," but I don't feel that the time was wasted at all.  I should clarify that I have varying degrees of focus on the piece, and it's rarely my "main thing.". So find a piece you like and give it some time and effort.

[andhow04]

Even if I like a piece that is posted in this section, I often don't "reply" to express my feelings.   I would like to apologize for all the times that I listened, enjoyed, and didn't react and grab this occasion to do so to express my admiration an gratitude for all this beautiful music and the often very "well-cared for" quality of the recordings of those experiences.   Bravo and thank you to you, Andhow04 (and to Rachfan).

I like Bach a lot.   And I like a lot your "audio" posts.  I'm full of admiration for your interpretation. I'm not ready at all to tackle all Bach and you confirm in a certain way by stating that this fugue is (and probably not only) technically demanding.   (I really would like to play him more Bach but I'm far from able to tackle the pieces I want to play ; I think that Bach's music in particular is a music of "study" more than any other composer, it needs 'study with a teacher' and analyse to get out of the music as much as possible)...      

I enjoyed both prelude and fugue a lot.   They sound sufficiently "finished", they sound neat and clear.   They are fresh, no boring or dull spots.  And they have personality.  An interpretation of a true craftmanship.  Congratulations and thank you, again.

.      

that was very kind of you!  thanks for the post and i am glad you enjoy to listen. bach does give me particular pleasure to study it is true.  i think it is because everything is interpreted as a melody...

[iratior]

I'm listening in too.  Keep up the good work.  Looking forward to the F# major fugue from Volume II.   But I have to watch it if I play the G# minor prelude from Volume II in the winter.  Always seems to bring on an ice storm!

[andhow04]

I'm listening in too.  Keep up the good work.  Looking forward to the F# major fugue from Volume II.   But I have to watch it if I play the G# minor prelude from Volume II in the winter.  Always seems to bring on an ice storm!

both of those are a ways away, i think, tho i have played g# minor from book ii several times already i would relearn it for this projet.  however i am kind of arbitrarily going in the order that bartok arranged them for his edition of wtc.  i don't like to look too far ahead because i like to be surprised what is coming next, but i dont think either of those are soon...

i had always heard that bartok arranged them according to difficulty but i dont really sense that. the first one was G major from book ii which has a tricky fugue, and a fairly tricky prelude that uses all 5 fingers equally... but later ones, such as d minor from book i, or even F# from book i, seem to me much easier to play.

theres a long introduction but its in hungarian maybe he arranged it in order of compositional difficulty, depending on the devices bach used for the fugues.  tahts possible, because the g major book ii fugue does seem relatively simple.

[johnlewisgrant]

Credit where credit is due: to take the prelude at that speed and get away with it..... bravo.... interest kept and sustained and increased right to the very end.   

Fantastic

JG

[johnlewisgrant]

And now the fugue ..... wonderful stuff.... who could fault this playing?   which is easily as good as anything in the "professional" world of Bach keyboard interpretations.   Almost perfectly even, and tempo exactly right.   No nonsense interpretation.   But emotional all the same.

JG

[emma84]

the prelude and fugue in e major from the first book.
the prelude is one of those totally charming bach pastorals. i sometimes play it faster but i guess iw as in a reflective mood this morning.
the fugue is very tricky, because it has long lines of running 16th notes that you have to redistribute between the hands often. it has a great rhytmic vitality and is fun to play but the slightest slip up is the end of that...

( 8 )

One of my favorite p&f and you play it very well!

[andhow04]

And now the fugue ..... wonderful stuff.... who could fault this playing?   which is easily as good as anything in the "professional" world of Bach keyboard interpretations.   Almost perfectly even, and tempo exactly right.   No nonsense interpretation.   But emotional all the same.

JG

thanks for listening and your nice comments. i had a good flow going with these but unfortuntely won't be able to post any new ones for a while as i am away for a couple of weeks! glad you enjoyed the ones so far.

[gsmile]

Both sound great! I like your style. For the fugue, remember to bring out the subject-- the first two notes of the second entry with the right hand didn't really come out in the recording.