J.S. Bach - Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, BWV 542 {Peter Hurford} 

@@langschwerts no fucking way, i understand that bach could improvise stuff beyond imagination, probably better than virtually anyone to this day, but if youre telling me he improvised even the first minute of the fugue note-for-note i wouldnt believe you

@@mullenenterprises he famously did…

Indeed, I was enraptured by the 6 consecutive subdominant key changes and the use of enharmonic equivalence which helps in turning to the triple dominant key.

Thank you for these insights, PointyTailofSatan!

@@NormanOBrown-yz8qb This is the organ . pipeorgandatabase.org/static/organ_images/1606/a61c7ecb-ad1c-44e7-a49d-9d98134a6377_Toronto.OurLadyofSor.1965CasavantFr.20131221.154033.jpg

My not-quite-favourite of his organ pieces. That role is filled by the fugue from the little E minor.

That's exactly it! Pure bliss, couldn't have said it better myself. I LOVE YOU J. S. Bach, thank you so much for gifting us all with such amazing musical pieces.

thanks friend, i was looking for the fugue

gracias!!

itilian isn't just the version without a 5th ? The harmonic thing I see is the German aug 6th on a dominant ped

@@hcab14 German aug 6th has Eb-G-Bb-C# resolve to D-F#-A-D. Italian has Eb-G-G-C#, so not just no 5th, but a doubled 3rd that resolve in contrary motion yielding D-F#-A-D. I was actually kind of stretching calling these either but I did like how it has the parallel 5th of the German and the doubled thirds resolving in opposite motion of the Italian all in one chord.

@@JoEbY-X oh ok I see thank you for your answer, I love harmony it is so interesting !

It sounds kind of unusual for Bach. Sounds like a chord Beethoven would use, however Bach I would expect to write it with an e natural.

No, it's a composed work.

The Barhenreiter edition says a b natural which is probably what Mr Hurford is using. I've viciously scrubbed out the accidental in my copy!

Yeah, I much prefer the minor cadence. Fits the theme of the fantasia much better, in my opinion.

@@andrewrichesson8627 But what do the sources say?

No, Mr. Hereford chooses a Picardy third for the final chord of the Fantasia, but I would prefer he keep the ending in the key of G minor

@@monsieurgrigny There was a study done where the author looked at the 34 of 35 surviving manuscripts of BWV 542. 7 of them contain the fantasy: 6 of them end with major and 1 in minor.

Most modern performances of Bach's famed Toccata and Fugue take a lot of liberties with tempo. You might want to listen to a more authentic-to-the-page performance of the work before doubting it's authorship. As far as I am aware, we have very good historical evidence that Bach did write BWV 565.

​@@Frightning I'm not referring to the interpretation. I've heard several of Bach's organ and keyboard works with varied interpretations on both modern and period instruments. People often over romanticizes Bach's music in performance so I'm fully aware of what an authentic performance should sound like, not just with Bach but all of Baroque and early classical music. This really doesn't change why I feel he did not write this piece. There is just as much evidence to suggest he didn't write it as there are that says he did. However, as I'm sure you know, there is no manuscript of this piece in his handwriting. The title of the work toccata, Bach never used it in his other intro and fugue works, "praeludium et fuga' is what is written on all of his other toccata and fugues, but those are names given to the pieces in later publishings. Bach's mastery in composing fugues are not followed in this piece. using octaves, having minor cadences, inconsistent voices, is it a 3 part fugue or 4 part? Bach's parts are consistent throughout, unlike let's say Handel who may use 3 and 4 parts sparingly in his fuges. There are no contrasting rhythms or contrary motion, everything follows the subject. Bach may have copied or arranged it as he's so known to do, but I don't believe it is an original piece.

@@TheMaestro2005 there is no manuscript in Bach's hand for BWV 542 either! Not having or having is not a seal-tight proof. For BWV 565 ... Im open to it being written by a teenage Bach.

It’s just a circular progression.

Liked the quavers long in that fugue subject - like using lots of bow on a double bass. Something you rarely hear - usually shorter.

The G major chord at the end of the fantasia is utterly ridiculous - a sort of sentimental, home-spun flourish to 'ease' the tension. Bach does that perfectly adequately at the end of the fugue. He didn't need Mr Hurford's help in the fantasia.A terrible blight on an otherwise excellent performance and registration.

@@richardmartin3631 Like you, I don't like at all the major chord at the end of the Fantasia. It removes brutally the all dramatic tension of the work. The Fuga, behind, is here to resolve the tension, so the final G major chord is logical.

@@keplergso8369 It's silly. It's sappy and sentimental. Some people just can't stand to live with musical tension without "resolving it" somehow. Like at the beginning of Beethoven's Copriolan overture, conductors just cannot stand to wait the length of the whole three silent beats before bringing the orchestra in. It's too confronting for them. They need their daily fix of Mozart (Most Fart), the emptiest, shallowest famous composer who ever lived. (Listen to Glenn Gould on the subject).

Good ear. But compare it to 5:10. I wonder if the first instance is an error in the score presented here.

I'm sure you mean this comment kindly but it might be better to say something like .... a musical evangelist. Is that your meaning, or that in someway Bach can bring us so disposed closer to God?