The fugue explained by Bach 

Thank you so much! I tried to show the structure in various ways so that everybody could hopefully understand it. Therefore your comment means a lot to me. 😊

Thank you very much for your kind words, especially since you have such musical knowledge. A compliment from you means a lot to me. 😊

Not to mention that about half of Bach's work's probably lost forever. Thank you for your kind comments!

imagine if every professional pianist is actually descended from bach, and having bach genes is in fact the key differentiator between super virtuosos and the rest

Personally I believe they're both conversations, but a fugue has a dominant subject whereas a sonata has two equivalent subjects. 😊

and a nocturne needs no words

@simonkormendy849 I completely agree with you. Though it's my personal belief that Bach's faith was put severely to the test, as I've already hinted in the series and which will become evident in ep. 23. Oops... spoiler alert! 🤣

​@@BachTheAnimatedSeries I read a webpage about JS Bach and his personality, apparently he had anger management issues according to the webpage I read, he would write annotations in his Bible, he was also apparently the kind of person who would be great to hang-out with, there's also a webpage with a photo of what he would have looked like in real life.

My city's Lutheran church is doing a performance of Christmas Oratorio on Christmas day, on period accurate replica instruments. Gotta love long trumpets with no valves

Most of what's being said about Bach is exaggerated or false, like e.g. the incident when he supposedly said that a bassoonist "played like a goat", which I also showed in Ep. 6. People seem to forget that Bach was only 18, that he was put in charge of a youth orchestra, most musicians of which had zero talent and many of them were older than Bach and of better provenance. The bassoon player in question was in fact the son of the honorary president of the city council! I can imagine that the young man in question didn't respect Bach's authority and that he even challenged it continuously. In this light, I suppose that most of us would have reached a point at which we explode and perhaps say things we don't really mean. To make matters worse, the young man in question and his comrades afterwards attacked Bach whilst he was walking home but Bach managed to drive them off by using his ceremonial sword. So it was probably that young man who had anger management problems, not Bach. But just those two little phrase "played like a goat" and "drew his sword" made it into the city records and so for posterity and people are all to eager to draw conclusions. This is also a reason why I'm making this series, i.e. to shed a different light on who Bach must have been and to put things into their proper perspective.

That must be a fantastic concert! I wish I could be there because Bach sounds so much better on authentic instruments. About that Oratorio, I'll mention it and the circumstances around it in ep. 23... oops, spoiler alert! 🤣

Beautifully said! 😊

I'm extremely happy with your comment because it's such a complex subject and you risk that people will comment that this video's too basic and that I've forgotten to mention so many things. I really hope that this video can be of use to music teachers, like you suggested. Anyway, I'm thrilled that you liked it. All the best!

Exactly! Thank you very much for this clarification.

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries I have heard _fugue_ described as a relay race that turns into a mixed game of "capture the flag" and "fox and hounds", sometimes with circus acrobatics (the retrograde and inversions). I think Herr Bach might be a trifle envious of the fugato development in the middle of the first movement of Borodin's String Quartet #1 in A-major. I really love the BWV 577 Gigue Fugue, and one of the better RU-vid posts if this piece is the Bach Birthday 2020 performance by Roberto Scarpa Maylougha. What Virgil Fox did with rhinestones Maestor Meylougan did with sneakers. See also the Prelude and Fugue in G#-Minor by Taneyev. See also the third movement of Widor's _Symphonie Gothique_ in which an augmented _Puer natus est_ thunders forth as a kind of pedal point at the climax.

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries but it's not a clarification, is it? Fugue voices aren't running away from each other, rather they're running together

Thank you very much for your kind words and especially for your wonderful life story. It's never too late to learn to play an instrument and I'm sure that, apart from all the suffering, it also gives you immense satisfaction.

🤣 Now here's an idea! Thank you! 😊

Thank you very much! That's about the most beautiful compliment there is! 😊

Thank you so much for your kind words, they mean a lot to me! Ep. 23 is in progress but it'll still take me months to finish...

Thank you very much for your kind words! About that German accent... I had thought about it originally but then everybody in the series would've had to talk with such an accent and this would have made it less understandable and perhaps even a bit "heavy". Though if you watch ep. 17 I'm sure you'll be pleased. 😆 Anyway, thank you once again!

Thank you! I'm so happy that in the end it turned out to be useful to you. 😊

Thank you very much, John! All my best wishes to you as well!

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries 👍 Thank you, Peter. 👍

Thank you very much, that's a lovely compliment! 😊

Bach sounds great on every instrument and I fully agree with what you said. Thank you! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries and thank you for this marvelous explanation!

Thank you very much! 😊 Yes, the thing is that if I had given Bach a German accent, all of the other characters in the series would've had to have a similar accent as well. This would have made it less understandable and perhaps also a bit pedantic. But if you watch ep. 17 I think you're going to be happy. 😆 Anyway, I'm glad that you find this video useful... that's all I tried to achieve.

Hello! I didnt know it was a series. Ill check it out! Well, you're right about the german language. Be sure that Ill watch your work and share! Thank you for your answer and a great new year for you. Greetings from the wonderful Brazil!@@BachTheAnimatedSeries

Thank you very much for your kind words. The intention was indeed to explain the fugue in a way that anybody could understand, so your comment means a lot to me. Thank you once more and I hope that you'll enjoy the rest of the series just as much.

Thank you very much, you're very kind. 😊

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries U r very welcome,my pleasure!Long Life to Classical Music composers 🎼

So true your observation humbles me.

Thank you very much! 😊

Wow! That must be a wonderful place! Since it's highly probable that I'll be declared mentally insane, I'd like to be recovered there as well. 🤣

There’s plenty of room

Thank you very much, that's a lovely compliment! 😊

I hope in a good sense? 😆 Well, it's a drama series... 😊

Thank you very much, Linda. 😊

Yes, there's so much to discover in fugues and I only scratched the surface. Thank you for the lovely compliment.

Thank you very much! 😊

Yes, I totally agree. So complicated but, oddly enough, so easy to listen to. Thank you! 😊

Thank you very much. Playing an instrument can be a curse sometimes because you have to keep practising, otherwise you lose your proficiency and all the hard work was for nothing. But playing brings you so much joy and peace of mind that it'll make you feel overjoyed that you persevered. It'll make your life whole. 😊

Thank you so much! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you very much!

Thank you very much for your kind words! 😊

Thank you, you're very kind! 😊

Thank you! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

I agree. 😊

Thank you very much. That's a wonderful compliment! 😊

Thank you very much for your lovely comment. It's exactly what I hoped to achieve. 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you! The odd thing about Bach is that he may have written the most complicated music ever, I find his music the easiest to listen to. All the best!

I can relate to that, I just can't stop listening when I hear Bach! Keep up your great work and all the best to you!

Thank you very much. I'm terribly sorry that it always takes me months to finish them, but hopefully you'll find it worth the wait. Very best regards, Peter

​@@BachTheAnimatedSeries That's perfectly okay, I can understand how much work goes into producing each episode, and yes it is always worth the wait for sure, I watched the film Amadeus on Netflix, I think Mozart may have been one of Bach's contemporaries or I could be wrong, I wonder if JS Bach knew about Mozart?

No, Mozart was born 6 years after Bach's death, but in his later years Mozart got to know Bach's work very well and he was even profoundly influenced by it, e.g. in his Requiem or in his 41st symphony. When he visited Leipzig in 1789 and heard one of Bach's motets he was reportedly in ecstasy and when the piece was finished he exclaimed: "Now here's something one can learn from!". Later that evening he was seen sitting on the floor surrounded by every Bach score they could find. 😊

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries What an interesting “factoid.” If you ever run out of inspiration for a next RU-vid, it would be fun to hear little known bits of info like that. Or maybe you could just collect them as you go along, for a RU-vid compendium one day. Or maybe I should stop thinking up things for someone else to do! It would be interesting, though, to hear examples of how Bach influenced other composers over time. I remember listening to a piece on the radio once, thinking, “This sounds like Bach, but not.” It turned out to be a Liszt variation of Bach. How many composers must there be who have tried that on? Thanks so much for this clear explanation of a fugue. Anyone who might criticize you for oversimplifying, doesn’t need the kind of instruction you are so generously providing to the rest of us. That’s what attracted me to this video. I never understood the basic structure before, and you picked a perfect illustration! I hung onto that repeated note to keep my bearings. I look forward to exploring the rest of your series.

Thank you very much for your kind compliments and comments! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Or very close anyway. Thank you!

Hahaha! Thank you! 😆

Well, I did mention that the theme is answered in the dominant, but I didn't want to dig too deep. This video's intended for people who have little to no knowledge about music theory and I hope that with this they already look at a fugue in a different way.

First thank you for your video and answer, I hope you can one day make a second video about mastering the circle of fifth ❤🙏@@BachTheAnimatedSeries

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you so much, that's a wonderful compliment! 😊

Thank you very much!

Now you're doing me too much honour. Thank you! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you very much!

You must be the only one indeed. I'm sure that many music students envy you. 😆

I'd wager your output matches your description

Comments like yours are the most dear to me as trying to explain something in a way that everyone can understand is a very difficult task. About Bach... he managed to transform those poor orphan boys of the St. Thomas institute in such a way that in less than a year they were able to perform his St. John's Passion. This is an incredible achievement and therefore Bach must have been a formidable teacher, someone who could inspire others to excel and to achieve greatness. I wouldn't even deserve to stand in his shadow. 😊 Thank you once more!

Thank you very much! 😊

Muchas gracias! 🤩

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries Wait a minute... Do you speak Spanish too? Or did you use Google Translate? Just asking.

​@@jmrabinez9254Lo siento por la tardanza. RU-vid tiene la opción de traducir los subtítulos de forma automática.

And many others. 😊

Thank you so very much! 😊

Thank you very much!

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you very much, that's an incredible compliment. 😊

I totally agree with you. I even have the impression that Bach's often used as a speed contest and perhaps I played BWV885 a little bit too fast as well... it's so easy to get carried away at the keyboard. Thank you very much for your valuable comment.

Trite and false. It's intellectual and visually (organized movement) aesthetic. @MusicMatters

@simonsmatthew You may enjoy E. Power Biggs performances.

Yes, a fugue is indeed a sort of process. The strange thing is that, at least for me personally, I find it the music that best cleanses the mind. Thank you for your kind words!

I feel the same way. Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

You're very kind, thank you. 😊

Thank you!

Thank you very much! 😊

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Thank you! 😊

Thank you! 😊

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Thank you very much!

Thank you very much for the lovely compliment! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you! 😊

Thank you very much, that's the most beautiful compliment I could wish for! 😊

Thank you so much, but Van Beethoven surely knew infinitely more about the fugue than me. Well, Van Beethoven was a Bach admirer all of his life. As a young man he got admitted to the Viennese court of baron Von Swieten where he got immersed in baroque music, especially Bach and Händel. He obtained a copy of Bach's WTK and played from it every day before composing, saying that it "cleansed his mind". This copy was later found full of Van Beethoven's comments and markings. For all of his life he would try to lay his hands on every Bach manuscript he could find, often paying a lot of money for them. His "holy grail" was the mass in H minor, which he found later in his life and which became the inspiration for his Missa Solemnis. But he dedicated many more works to Bach, e.g. his Große Fugue and the end fugue of his 9th symphony. "Not brook (bach = brook) but ocean should be his name". 😊

​@@BachTheAnimatedSeriesBeethoven was a prodigy, he played all the wtc 1 when he was 13/15 years old

Thank you very much! 😊

Or as the great Eddie Palmieri said: "Bach really was the first Jazz musician". 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Yes, it's an amazing piece and so a-typical of him. Hopefully you'll now discover also some of Bach's work as well because if you loved Chopin's, you're going to adore Bach's fugues as well. Thank you very much for the wonderful comments and all my best wishes to you for 2024!

Thank you! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

I surely will, though first I have to finish Bach's life story. Thank you very much!

Very true and I think that I explained that in this video. The fugue originates from the canon so that's why I mentioned it.

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries Yes, indeed. But what I was missing were variations of the fugue, like stretti. It is very common in fugues that melody and counterpoint are played very prominently in the exposition, and then repeated in shortened forms and smaller intervals, woven into each other, to make the sound more interesting.

Thank you very much!

A stretto isn't necessarily a part of a fugue. Stretto is Italian for "short", i.e. only a part of the theme is played, which I tried to show in the video by e.g. "The weather is...". But yes, one might argue that the sonata is similar as it has two themes and both of equal importance, but no counterpoint. Also the sonata was a baroque invention, by the way, and Bach wrote a number of them but especially Scarlatti was a master of this style.

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries I know stretto isn't necessary, but it's often the climax of Bach's fugues. The Classical style (as compared to the Baroque style) of sonata, was entirely the invention of Franz Josef Haydn (see Charles Rosen's "The Classical Style"). And Classical style sonatas absolutely do have counterpoint! All Western European music after Gregorian chant has been contrapuntal.

Thank you very much!

Thank you very much! 😊

Thank you! 😊

Thank you very much! 😊

Too kind as always, Alexandru. My very best wishes to you, your family and loved ones! 😊

@@BachTheAnimatedSeries Thank yoi , Happy Christmas a beautiful heart to you and your loved ones in the family !🌲🎇🔥