Toccatas BWV 910-916

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The toccatas BWV 910–916 are seven toccatas for keyboard instruments by Johann Sebastian Bach . They were originally written for the harpsichord or clavichord , but are now also played on the piano .

content

  1. Toccata in F sharp minor, BWV 910; 199 bars
  2. Toccata in C minor, BWV 911; 175 bars
  3. Toccata in D major, BWV 912; 277 bars
  4. Toccata in D minor, BWV 913; 296 bars
  5. Toccata in E minor, BWV 914; 142 bars
  6. Toccata in G minor, BWV 915; 194 bars
  7. Toccata in G major, BWV 916; 177 bars. (This work is called "Concerto seu Toccata" in a copy by Heinrich Nikolaus Gerber , a student of Bach.)

description

The period of origin of the seven toccatas is set between 1707 and 1713, in Bach's Weimar period. The seven pieces are written in the spirit of the Stylus Phantasticus , which reached its heyday in the 17th century, and have an improvisational character, which also allows numerous rhythmic freedoms. An introductory virtuoso drive is usually followed by a slow movement followed by a lively fugue , often with a preference for double themes , then an expressive adagio , and at the end again a fugitive, mostly double theme Allegro .

None of the toccatas has survived in Bach's autograph writing. But there are still numerous copies from his group of students. However, none of them contain all seven toccatas, and they differ in some places. Whether it is an oversight, an unauthorized change by the writer, or an improvement that can be traced back to Bach himself cannot always be determined with absolute certainty. The source criticism therefore makes particularly difficult demands in these cases.

Although the Bach renaissance first flourished in the 19th century, these early works by Bach were not yet very popular at that time, but were regarded as immature attempts by a beginner. Philipp Spitta , referring to Forkel's first Bach biography from 1802, writes in the first volume of his extensive treatise on Bach in 1873: It appears that the combination of fugue and concert movements already occupied him during his training years: there is a composition which, in its sometimes clumsy, sometimes immoderate nature, can only be a beginner's work.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ JS Bach: Toccatas. G. Henle Verlag, Munich, p. 93.
  2. ^ Foreword by Rudolf Steglich to: JS Bach: Toccaten. G. Henle Verlag, Munich.
  3. ^ Philipp Spitta: Johann Sebastian Bach. A biography in two volumes. Severus Verlag, p. 415

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