A six-part fugue from The Musical Offering, in the hand of Johann Sebastian Bach. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise"

In music, a fugue (pronounced /ˈfjuːg/) is a type of contrapuntal composition or technique of composition for a fixed number of parts, normally referred to as "voices". Music is an Art form in which the medium is Sound organized in Time. In Music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and Rhythm, and interdependent in Harmony Musical composition is an original piece of Music the structure of a musical piece the process of creating a new In Music, a melody (from Greek μελῳδία - melōidía, "singing chanting" also tune, voice, or ^[1] In the Middle Ages, the term was widely used to denote any works in canonic style; by the Renaissance, it had come to denote specifically imitative works. In Music, a canon is a contrapuntal composition that employs a Melody with one or more imitations of the melody played after a given duration (e The Renaissance (from French Renaissance, meaning "rebirth" Italian: Rinascimento, from re- "again" and nascere ^[2] Since the 17th century^[3], the term fugue has described what is commonly regarded as the most fully developed procedure of imitative counterpoint. A fugue opens with one main theme, the subject, which then sounds successively in each voice in imitation; when each voice has entered, the exposition is complete; this is occasionally followed by a connecting passage, or episode, developed from previously heard material; further "entries" of the subject then are heard in related keys. Episodes (if applicable) and entries are usually alternated until the "final entry" of the subject, by which point the music has returned to the opening key, or tonic, which is often followed by closing material, the coda. Coda ( Italian for "tail" from the Latin cauda, see below is a term used in Music in a number of different senses primarily to designate ^[4][1] In this sense, fugue is a style of composition, rather than fixed structure. Though there are certain established practices, in writing the exposition for example,^[5] composers approach the style with varying degrees of freedom and individuality.

The form evolved during the 17th century from several earlier types of contrapuntal compositions, such as imitative ricercars, capriccios, canzonas, and fantasias. As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 17th Century was that Century which lasted from 1601 - 1700 in the Gregorian calendar A ricercar (or ricercare recercar; the terms are interchangeable is a type of late Renaissance and mostly early Baroque instrumental composition See Capriccio for other uses of the term A capriccio or caprice (sometimes plural caprices, capri or in In music a canzona (also Canzone) was a 16th-century multipart vocal setting of a literary canzone and a 16th - and 17th-century instrumental The fantasia (also fantasy fancy Fantasie fantaisie is a musical composition with its roots in the art of Improvisation. ^[6] Middle and late Baroque composers such as Dietrich Buxtehude (1637–1707) and Johann Pachelbel (1653–1706) contributed greatly to the development of the fugue, and the form reached ultimate maturity in the works of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750). Baroque art redirects here Please disambiguate such links to Baroque painting, Baroque sculpture, etc Dieterich Buxtehude ( Dietrich, Diderich) (c 1637 &ndash 9 May 1707 was a German-Danish Organist, Lutenist WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise" ^[6] With the decline of sophisticated contrapuntal styles at the end of the baroque period, the fugue's popularity as a compositional style waned, eventually giving way to sonata form. Usage of sonata The Baroque applied the term sonata to a variety of works though most works in the Baroque Period were fugues and toccatas ^[7] Nevertheless, composers from the 1750s to the present day continue to write and study fugue for various purposes; they appear in the works of Mozart (e. g. Kyrie Eleison of the Requiem in D minor)^[7] and Beethoven (e. The Requiem Mass in D minor ( K 626 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was composed in 1791 Ludwig van Beethoven ( English ˈlʊdvɪg væn ˈbeɪtoʊvən, 16 December 1770 &ndash 26 March 1827 was a German Composer and Pianist. g. end of the Credo of the Missa Solemnis),^[7] and many composers such as Anton Reicha (1770–1836) and Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975) wrote cycles of fugues. The Missa solemnis in D Major Op 123 was composed by Ludwig van Beethoven from 1819-1823 Anton ( Antonín, Antoine) Reicha ( Rejcha) ( February 26, 1770 &ndash May 28, 1836) was a Czech -born Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich ( Russian: ru Дмитрий Дмитриевич Шостакович ( &ndash 9 August 1975 was a Russian Composer ^[8]

The English term fugue originates in the 16th century and is derived from either the French or Italian fuga, which in turn comes from Latin, also fuga, which is itself related to both fugere (‘to flee’) and fugare, (‘to chase’). ^[9] The adjectival form is fugal. ^[10] Variants include fughetta (literally, 'a small fugue') and fugato (a passage in fugal style within another work that is not a fugue). ^[1]

Musical outline

A fugue begins with what is known as the exposition and is characteristically written according to certain predefined rules; in later portions the composer has somewhat more freedom, though a logical key structure is usually followed, and further "entries" of the subject will occur throughout the fugue, repeating the accompanying material at the same time. The various entries may or may not be separated by episodes.

What follows is a chart displaying a fairly typical fugal outline, and a detailed explanation of the processes involved in creating this structure, with examples.

The Exposition

A fugue begins with the exposition of its subject sounding in one of the voices alone in the tonic key. The tonic is the first note of a musical scale in the tonal method of Musical composition. ^[11] After the statement of the subject, a second voice enters with the subject transposed to the dominant, which is known as the answer. In Music, the dominant is the Fifth degree of the scale. For example in the C Major scale (white keys on a piano starting with C the Sometimes the answer is the tonic or subdominant (see J. In Music, the subdominant is the technical name for the fourth tonal degree of the Diatonic scale. S. Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565, and the opening fugato of the Partita No 2 in C minor, BWV 826); to avoid disturbing the sense of key, it may also have to be altered slightly. The Partitas, BWV 825–830 are a set of six Harpsichord Suites written by Johann Sebastian Bach, published from 1726 to When the answer is an exact transposition of the subject to the dominant, it is classified as a real answer; if it has to be altered in any way it is a tonal answer. ^[11]

Example of a tonal answer in J.S. Bach's Fugue no. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise" 16 in G minor, BWV 861, from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1. The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by ( Listen )
The first note of the subject, D, (in red) is a prominent dominant note, demanding that the first note of the answer (in blue) sounds as the tonic, G, rather than A.

A tonal answer is usually called for when the subject begins with a prominent dominant note, or where there is a prominent dominant note very close to the beginning of the subject. ^[11] To prevent an undermining of the music's sense of key, this note is transposed up a fourth to the tonic rather than up a fifth to the supertonic. In Music theory, the term key is used in many different and sometimes contradictory ways Answers in the subdominant are also employed for the same reason and tend to occur in specific circumstances: a) when the subject begins with the following scale tones: 5-4-5 or 5-4-3; and b) when subjects themselves modulate to the dominant, in which case, the answer begins in the subdominant, and subsequently modulates to the tonic. ^[12]

While the answer is being stated, the voice in which the subject was previously heard continues with new material. If this new material is reused in later statements of the subject, it is called a countersubject; if this accompanying material is only heard once, it is simply referred to as free counterpoint. Each voice then responds with its own subject or answer in turn, and further countersubjects or free counterpoint may be heard.

When a tonal answer is used, it is customary for the exposition to alternate subjects (S) with answers (A), however, in some fugues this order is occasionally varied: e. g. see the SAAS arrangement of Fugue no. 1 in C major, BWV 846, from the Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1 by J. The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by S. Bach. A brief codetta is often heard connecting the various statements of the subject and answer. This allows the music to either a) return to the tonic, following an answer in the dominant, or b) to modulate to the dominant to enable a statement of the answer.

The first answer must occur as soon after the initial statement of the subject as possible, therefore the first codetta is often extremely short, and in many cases is not even needed. In the above example this is the case: the subject finishes on the quarter note or crotchet b-flat of the third beat of the second bar which harmonizes the opening G of the answer. A quarter note (American or "German" terminology or crotchet (British or "classical" terminology is a note played for one quarter of the duration The second and later codettas may be considerably longer, and often serve to a) develop the material heard so far in the subject/answer and countersubject and possibly introduce ideas heard in the second countersubject or free counterpoint that follows b) delay, and therefore heighten the impact of the reentry of the subject in another voice as well as modulating back to the tonic. ^[13]

The exposition usually concludes when all voices have given a statement of the subject or answer. In many fugues, however, there is one more entry of the subject, called a redundant entry, in which all of the voices sound simultaneously. ^[11] Furthermore, in some fugues the entry of one of the voices may be reserved until later, for example in the pedals of an Organ Fugue (see J. S. Bach's Fugue in C major for Organ, BWV 547). Whilst the voices of a fugue may enter in any order desired, Bach frequently reserves the bass entry until last, for dramatic effect. Opening with the subject stated in the bass, whilst unusual, is to be preferred when other actions would present illegal inversions in the exposition.

The Countersubject(s)

The interval of a fifth inverts to a fourth (dissonant) and therefore cannot be employed in invertible counterpoint, without preparation and resolution.

The distinction is made between the use of free counterpoint and regular countersubjects accompanying the fugue subject/answer, because in order for a countersubject to be heard accompanying the subject in more than one instance, it must be capable of sounding correctly above or below the subject, and must be conceived, therefore, in invertible or double counterpoint. In Music theory, the word inversion has several meanings There are inverted chords, inverted melodies, inverted intervals, and ^[11][14] In tonal music invertible contrapuntal lines must be written according to certain rules because several intervallic combinations, whilst acceptable in one particular orientation, are no longer permissible when inverted. For example, when the note "G" sounds in one voice above the note "C" in lower voice, the interval of a fifth is formed, which is considered consonant and entirely acceptable. When this interval is inverted ("C" in the upper voice above "G" in the lower), it forms a fourth, considered a dissonance in tonal contrapuntal practice, and requires special treatment, or preparation and resolution, if is to be used. ^[15] Likewise, the use of a 4-3 suspension is somewhat ineffectual in invertible counterpoint; in inversion it becomes 5-6, and since both the fifth and sixth are considered consonant intervals, is not a suspension at all, whereas the 7-6 suspension may be used successfully as it inverts to 2-3.

When writing invertible countersubjects in a fugue, composers therefore usually restrict themselves to the intervals of the third, which inverts to a sixth, and octaves, which invert to the unison, in addition the careful use of the 7-6 suspension. In Music, an octave ( is the the use of which is "common in most musical systems In Music, a unison () is an interval, the ratio of 11 or 0 half steps and zero cents.

The Episode

Further entries of the subject follow this initial exposition, either immediately (as for example in Fugue no. 1 in C major, BWV 846, WTC Bk 1), or separated by episodes. The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by ^[11] Episodic material is always modulatory and is usually based upon some element heard in the exposition. ^[11][4] Each episode has primarily the function of modulating for the next entry of the subject in a new key,^[11] and may also provide release from the strictness of form employed in the exposition, and middle-entries. ^[16] Whilst not all of Bach's fugues contain episodes, most have at least one serving as a modulatory bridge passage between the middle-entries, on which the greater emphasis is usually laid.

The Middle-Entries

Further entries of the subject, or middle entries, occur at various intervals throughout the fugue, must state the subject or answer at least once in its entirety, and may also be heard in combination with the countersubject(s) from the exposition, new countersubjects, free counterpoint or any of these in combination. It is uncommon for the subject to enter alone in a single voice in the middle-entries just as it is in the exposition; rather it is usually heard with at least one of the countersubjects and/or other free contrapuntal accompaniments. Middle-entries tend to occur in keys other than the tonic - as shown in the typical structure above, these are often closely related keys such as the relative dominant and subdominant, but key structure of fugues varies greatly. In the fugues of J. S. Bach (see for example Fugue no. 2 in C Minor, BWV 847, from J.S. Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier Book 2, quoted below) the first middle-entry very commonly occurs in the relative major or minor of the work's overall key, and is followed by an entry the dominant of the relative major or minor when the fugue's subject requires a tonal answer. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise" The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by

Some fugues may also have one or more counter-expositions, similar to the opening exposition, but in which the subject is altered in some way^[17], often by inversion, although the term is sometimes used synonymously with middle-entry and may also describe the exposition of completely new subjects, as in a double fugue for example (see below). In any of the entries within a fugue the subject may be altered, by inversion, retrograde (a less common form where the entire subject is heard back-to-front) and diminution (the reduction of the subject's rhythmic values by a certain factor), augmentation (the increase of the subject's rhythmic values by a certain factor) or any combination of them. In Music theory, the word inversion has several meanings There are inverted chords, inverted melodies, inverted intervals, and In Music, a permutation of a set is a transformation of its Prime form by applying zero or more of certain operations, specifically Diminution, from Italian diminuimento, is a musical term used to mean different things in the context of melodies and intervals or chords. In Music and Music theory augmentation is the lengthening or widening of Rhythms melodies, intervals chords The opposite ^[11]

Example and Analysis

The excerpt below, bars 7–12 of J.S. Bach's Fugue no. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise" 2 in C minor, BWV 847, from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1 illustrates the application of most of the characteristics described above. The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by The fugue is for keyboard and in three voices, with regular countersubjects. ^[4][18] This excerpt opens at last entry of the exposition: the subject is sounding in the bass, the first countersubject in the treble, the second countersubject in the middle-voice. Following this an episode modulates from the tonic to the relative major by means of sequence, in the form of an accompanied canon at the 4th. In Music, a canon is a contrapuntal composition that employs a Melody with one or more imitations of the melody played after a given duration (e ^[19] Arrival in E-flat major is marked by a quasi perfect cadence across the barline, from the last quarter note beat of the first bar to the first beat of the second bar in the second system, and the first middle entry. Here Bach has altered countersubject 2 to accommodate the change of mode. ^[20]

Visual Analysis of J.S. Bach's Fugue no. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise" 2 in C minor, BWV 847, from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1(bars 7–12)( Listen )

False entries

At any point in the fugue there may be false entries of the subject, which include the start of the subject but are not completed. The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by False entries are often abbreviated to the head of the subject, and anticipate the "true" entry of the subject, heightening the impact of the subject proper. ^[21]

Example of a false answer in J.S. Bach's Fugue no. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise" 2 in C minor, BWV 847, from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1. The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by This passage is bars 6/7, at the end of the codetta before the first entry of the third voice, the bass, in the exposition. The false entry occurs in the alto, and consists of the head of the subject only, marked in red. It anticipates the true entry of the subject, marked in blue, by one quarter-note. A quarter note (American or "German" terminology or crotchet (British or "classical" terminology is a note played for one quarter of the duration

Stretto

Sometimes counter-expositions or the middle entries take place in stretto, whereby one voice responds with the subject/answer before the first voice has completed its entry of the subject/answer, usually increasing the intensity of the music. ^[22]

Example of stretto fugue in a quotation from Fugue in C major by Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer who died in 1746. Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer (some authorities use the spelling Johann Kasper Ferdinand Fischer) (died 1746 was a German Baroque Composer The subject, including an eighth note rest, is seen in the soprano voice, starting on beat 1 bar 1 and ending on beat 1 bar 3, which is where the answer would usually be expected to begin. As this is a stretto the answer already takes place in the tenor voice, on the third quarter note of the first bar, therefore coming in "early".

Only one entry of the subject must be heard in its completion in a stretto. However, a stretto in which the subject/answer is heard in completion in all voices is known as stretto maestrale or grand stretto. ^[23] Strettos may also occur by inversion, augmentation and diminution. A fugue in which the opening exposition takes place in stretto form is known as a close fugue or stretto fugue (see for example, the Gratias agimus tibi and Dona nobis pacem choruses from Bach's Mass in B Minor). The Mass in B minor ( BWV 232 is a musical setting (or more formally a Missa tota) of the Latin Mass by Johann Sebastian Bach, also ^[24] In general, fugues that are densely strettoed will not contain countersubjects, and vice versa. One notable exception is the E Major fugue from Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II, which initially exposes the subject accompanied by its countersubject, followed by counterexposition of the two ideas, separated in time, and each in stretto with itself.

Final entries and Coda

The closing section of a fugue often includes one or two counter-expositions, and possibly a stretto, in the tonic; sometimes over a tonic or dominant pedal note. In tonal music, a pedal point (also pedal tone pedal note organ point or pedal is a Sustained tone typically in the bass, during which at least one Any material that follows the final entry of the subject is considered to be the final coda and is normally cadential. In Western Musical theory, a harmonic cadence (Latin cadentia, "a falling" is a formula of two chords that conclude ^[4]

Types of Fugue

Double (triple, quadruple) fugue

A double fugue has two subjects that are often developed simultaneously, similarly it follows that a triple fugue has three subjects. ^[25][26] It is not widely agreed whether a double fugue can be defined as; a) a fugue in which the second subject is presented simultaneously with the subject in the exposition (e. g. as in Kyrie Eleison of Mozart's Requiem in D minor) or; b) a fugue in which the second subject has its own exposition at some later point, and the two subjects are not combined until later (see for example, fugue no. Kýrie is from the Greek word κύριε (kyrie the Vocative case of κύριος (kyrios meaning O Lord. The Requiem Mass in D minor ( K 626 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was composed in 1791 14 in f-sharp minor from Bach's Well-tempered Clavier Book 2). The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by ^[25][27]

Counter-Fugue

A counter-fugue is a fugue in which the first answer is presented as the subject in inversion, and the inverted subject continues to feature prominently throughout the fugue,^[28] as for example in Bach's The Art of Fugue, Contrapunctus IV. In Music theory, the word inversion has several meanings There are inverted chords, inverted melodies, inverted intervals, and The Art of Fugue or The Art of the Fugue (original German Die Kunst der Fuge) BWV 1080 is an incomplete masterpiece ^[29]

Permutation Fugue

Permutation fugue describes a type of composition (or technique of composition) in which elements of fugue and strict canon are combined. ^[30] Each voice enters in succession with the subject, each entry alternating between tonic and dominant, and each voice, having stated the initial subject, continues by stating two or more themes (or countersubjects), which must be conceived in correct invertible counterpoint. Each voice takes this pattern and states all the subjects/themes in the same order (and repeats the material when all the themes have been stated, sometimes after a rest). There is usually very little non-structural/thematic material. It is common during the course of a permutation fugue for every single possible voice-combination (or 'permutation') of the themes to be heard at some point. One example of permutation fugue can be seen in the opening chorus of Bach’s cantata, Himmelskönig, sei willkommen BWV182.

Permutation fugues differ from conventional fugue in that there are no connecting episodes, nor statement of the themes in related keys. ^[30]

History

The term fuga was used as far back as the Middle Ages, but was initially used to refer to any kind of imitative counterpoint, including canons, which are now thought of as distinct from fugues. In Music, a canon is a contrapuntal composition that employs a Melody with one or more imitations of the melody played after a given duration (e It was not until the 16th century that fugal technique as it is understood today began to be seen in pieces, both instrumental and vocal. Fugal writing is found in works such as fantasias, ricercares and canzonas.

The fugue arose from the technique of "imitation", where the same musical material was repeated starting on a different note. Originally this was to aid improvisation, but by the 1550s, it was considered a technique of composition. Improvisation (also called extemporization) is the practice of acting singing talking and reacting of making and creating in the moment and in response to the stimulus of The Renaissance composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525?-1594) wrote masses using modal counterpoint and imitation, and fugal writing became the basis for writing motets as well. The Renaissance (from French Renaissance, meaning "rebirth" Italian: Rinascimento, from re- "again" and nascere Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (between 3 February 1525 and 2 February 1526 - 2 February 1594 was an Italian Composer of the Renaissance. In Music, a scale is an ordered series of Musical intervals which along with the key or tonic, define the pitches However mode In Western music, motet is a word that is applied to a number of highly varied choral musical compositions Palestrina's imitative motets differed from fugues in that each phrase of the text had a different subject which was introduced and worked out separately, whereas a fugue continued working with the same subject or subjects throughout the entire length of the piece.

Baroque era

It was in the Baroque period that the writing of fugues became central to composition, in part as a demonstration of compositional expertise. Baroque music describes an era and a set of styles of European classical music which were in widespread use between approximately 1600 and 1750. Fugues were incorporated into a variety of musical forms. Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, Girolamo Frescobaldi, Johann Jakob Froberger and Dieterich Buxtehude all wrote fugues, and George Frideric Handel included them in many of his oratorios. Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (April or May 1562 &ndash October 16 1621 was a Dutch Composer, Organist, and Pedagogue whose work straddled the Girolamo Frescobaldi (baptized mid-September 1583 – March 1 1643 was an Italian musician one of the most important Composers of keyboard music in the late Johann Jakob Froberger ( baptized May 19 1616 &ndash May 7 1667 was a German Baroque composer keyboard Virtuoso, and Organist Dieterich Buxtehude ( Dietrich, Diderich) (c 1637 &ndash 9 May 1707 was a German-Danish Organist, Lutenist An oratorio is a large Musical composition including an Orchestra, a Choir, and soloists The oratorio was somewhat modeled after the Opera Keyboard suites from this time often conclude with a fugal gigue. In Music, a suite is an ordered set of Instrumental or Orchestral pieces normally performed in a Concert The gigue ( {{IPA|/ʒig/}}) or giga is a lively Baroque dance originating from the British Jig. The French overture featured a quick fugal section after a slow introduction. The French overture is a Musical form widely used in the Baroque period The second movement of a sonata da chiesa, as written by Arcangelo Corelli and others, was usually fugal. Sonata da chiesa ( Italian: Church sonata) is an instrumental composition dating from the Baroque period generally consisting of four movements WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> Arcangelo Corelli (February 17 1653 &ndash January 8 1713 was a French Violinist

The Baroque period also saw a rise in the importance of music theory. Music theory is the field of study that deals with the Mechanics of music and how Music works The most influential text was published by Johann Joseph Fux (1660–1741), his Gradus Ad Parnassum ("Steps to Parnassus"), which appeared in 1725. Johann Joseph Fux ( pronounced) (1660 &ndash 13 February 1741 was an Austrian composer music theorist and pedagogue of the late Baroque era Mythology Mount Parnassus is named after Parnassos the son of the Nymph Kleodora and the man Kleopompus. This work laid out the terms of "species" of counterpoint, and offered a series of exercises to learn fugue writing. Fux's work was largely based on the practice of Palestrina's modal fugues. It remained influential into the nineteenth century. Haydn, for example, taught counterpoint from his own summary of Fux, and thought of it as the basis for formal structure.

Johann Sebastian Bach often entered into contests where he would be given a subject with which to spontaneously improvise a fugue on the organ or harpsichord. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise" Improvisation (also called extemporization) is the practice of acting singing talking and reacting of making and creating in the moment and in response to the stimulus of The organ (from Greek όργανον – organon "organ instrument tool" is a Keyboard instrument of one or more divisions each A harpsichord is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This musical form was also apparent in chamber music he would later compose for Weimar; the famous Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor (BWV 1043) (although not contrapuntal in its entirety) has a fugal opening section to its first movement. The Concerto for Two Violins in D minor (BWV 1043 is perhaps one of the most famous works by J

Bach's most famous fugues are those for the harpsichord in The Well-Tempered Clavier and the Art of Fugue, and his organ fugues, which are usually preceded by a prelude or toccata. The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by The Art of Fugue or The Art of the Fugue (original German Die Kunst der Fuge) BWV 1080 is an incomplete masterpiece A prelude is a short piece of Music, which its form will vary from piece to piece Toccata (from Italian toccare, "to touch" is a Virtuoso piece of music typically for a keyboard or Plucked string instrument The Art of Fugue is a collection of fugues (and four canons) on a single theme that is gradually transformed as the cycle progresses. In Music, a canon is a contrapuntal composition that employs a Melody with one or more imitations of the melody played after a given duration (e The Well-Tempered Clavier comprises two volumes written in different times of Bach's life, each comprising 24 prelude and fugue pairs, one for each major and minor key. Bach also wrote smaller single fugues, and put fugues into many of his works that were not fugues per se.

Although J. S. Bach was not well known as a composer in his lifetime, his influence extended forward through his son C.P.E. Bach and through the theorist Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg (1718–1795) whose Abhandlung von der Fuge ("Treatise on the fugue", 1753) was largely based on J. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach ( March 8, 1714 &ndash December 14, 1788) was a German musician and composer the second of five sons Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg ( 21 November 1718 - 22 May 1795) was a German music critic, music-theorist and S. Bach's work.

See also: List of fugal works by Johann Sebastian Bach

Classical era

During the Classical era, the fugue was no longer a central or even fully natural mode of musical composition. This page lists the fugal works of Johann Sebastian Bach, defined here as the Fugues Fughettas and canons, as well as other works containing fugal expositions Nevertheless, both Haydn and Mozart had periods of their careers in which they in some sense "rediscovered" fugal writing and used it frequently in their work.

Haydn's most famous fugues can be found in his Sun quartets, (op. This is a list of String quartets by Joseph Haydn, including the number they are given in Anthony van Hoboken 's catalogue of his works 20, 1772) of which three have fugal finales. This was a practice that Haydn repeated only once later in his quartet-writing career, with the finale of his quartet Op. 50 no. 4 (1787). Some of the earliest examples of Haydn's use of counterpoint, however, are in three symphonies (No. 3, No. 13, and No. Joseph Haydn 's Symphony No 13 in D major was written in 1763 for the Orchestra of Haydn's patron Prince Nikolaus Esterházy, in Eisenstadt. 40) that date from 1762–63. The earliest fugues, in both the symphonies and in the baryton trios, exhibit the influence of Joseph Fux's treatise on counterpoint, Gradus ad Parnassum (1725), which Haydn studied carefully. Haydn's second fugal period occurred after he heard, and was greatly inspired by, the oratorios of Handel during his visits to London (1791–1793, 1794–1795). An oratorio is a large Musical composition including an Orchestra, a Choir, and soloists The oratorio was somewhat modeled after the Opera Haydn then studied Handel's techniques and incorporated Handelian fugal writing into the choruses of his mature oratorios The Creation and The Seasons, as well as several of his later symphonies, including No. 88, No. 95, and No. 101. The Creation (Die Schöpfung is an Oratorio written between 1796 and 1798 by Joseph Haydn ( H The Seasons (German Die Jahreszeiten) is an Oratorio by Joseph Haydn ( H The Symphony No 88 in G major (Hoboken 1/88 was written by Joseph Haydn. The Symphony No 95 in C minor (Hoboken 1/95 is the third of the so-called twelve London symphonies (numbers 93-104 written by Joseph Haydn. The Symphony No 101 in D major (Hoboken 1/101 is the ninth of the twelve so-called London Symphonies written by Joseph Haydn.

Mozart studied counterpoint when young with Padre Martini in Rome. Giovanni Battista Martini, also known as Padre Martini ( April 24, 1706 – August 3, 1784) was an Italian Musician However, the major impetus to fugal writing for Mozart was the influence of Baron Gottfried van Swieten in Vienna around 1782. Baron Gottfried van Swieten ( Leiden, October 29, 1733 - Vienna, March 29, 1803) was a diplomat librarian and government Van Swieten, during diplomatic service in Berlin, had taken the opportunity to collect as many manuscripts by Bach and Handel as he could, and he invited Mozart to study his collection and also encouraged him to transcribe various works for other combinations of instruments. Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. Mozart was evidently fascinated by these works, and wrote a set of transcriptions for string trio of fugues from Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, introducing them with preludes of his own. The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by Mozart then set to writing fugues on his own, mimicking the Baroque style. These included the fugues for string quartet, K. 405 (1782) and a fugue in C Minor K. 426 for two pianos (1783). Later, Mozart incorporated fugal writing into the finale of his Symphony No. 41 and his opera Die Zauberflöte. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart completed his Symphony No 41 in C major ( K The Magic Flute (German Die Zauberflöte, K 620 is an Opera in two acts composed in 1791 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart The parts of the Requiem he completed also contain several fugues (most notably the Kyrie, and the three fugues in the Domine Jesu; he also left behind a sketch for an Amen fugue which would have come at the end of the Sequentia). The Requiem (from Latin requiem, accusative case of requies, rest or Requiem Mass (informally a funeral Mass also known formally (in Latin as the The word Amen (; آمين, ’Āmīn; "So be it truly" Its use in Judaism dates back to its earliest texts

A common characteristic of the Classical composers is that they usually wrote fugues not as isolated works but as part of a larger work, often as a sonata-form development section or as a finale. It was also characteristic to abandon fugal texture just before the end of a work, providing a purely homophonic resolution. This is found, for instance, in the final fugue of the chorus "The Heavens are Telling" in Haydn's The Creation (1798). The Creation (Die Schöpfung is an Oratorio written between 1796 and 1798 by Joseph Haydn ( H

Romantic era

Charles-Valentin Alkan wrote a nine-part fugue in his Grande sonate (Op. Charles-Valentin Alkan ( November 30 1813 &ndash March 29 1888) was a French Composer and one of the greatest Virtuoso Grande sonate 'Les quatre âges' ( French for Grand sonata The Four Ages) is a four movement Sonata for Piano by Charles-Valentin Alkan 33).

By the beginning of the Romantic era, fugue writing had become specifically attached to the norms and styles of the Baroque. Romantic Music is a Musicological term referring to a particular period theory compositional practice and canon in European music history from about 1815 to 1910 Ludwig van Beethoven was familiar with fugal writing from childhood, as an important part of his training was playing from The Well-Tempered Clavier. Ludwig van Beethoven ( English ˈlʊdvɪg væn ˈbeɪtoʊvən, 16 December 1770 &ndash 26 March 1827 was a German Composer and Pianist. The Well-Tempered Clavier ( Das Wohltemperirte Clavier in the original old German spelling BWV 846–893 is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by During his early career in Vienna, Beethoven attracted notice for his performance of these fugues. Vienna ( in Wien; see also other names) is the Capital of Austria, and is also one of the nine States of Austria. There are fugal sections in Beethoven's early piano sonatas, and fugal writing is to be found in the second and fourth movements of the Eroica Symphony (1805). The Symphony No 3 in E flat major ( Op 55 by Ludwig van Beethoven (known as the Eroica which is Italian for "heroic" Nevertheless, fugues did not take on a truly central role in Beethoven's work until his "late period. " A fugue forms the development section of the last movement of his piano sonata op. 101 (1816), and massive, dissonant fugues form the finales of his Hammerklavier piano sonata (1818) and string quartet op. 130 (1825); the latter was later published separately as op. Ludwig van Beethoven 's Piano Sonata No 29 in B flat major, opus 106, known as the Große Sonate für das Hammerklavier, or more simply as the The String Quartet No 13 in B♭ major opus 130 by Ludwig van Beethoven was completed in November 1825. 133, the Grosse Fuge ("Great Fugue"). The Große Fuge is a single-movement composition for String quartet by Ludwig van Beethoven famous for its extreme technical demands on the players as well as for Also his piano sonata op. 110 and his cello sonata op. 102,2 have fugue movements. Beethoven's last piano sonata, op. 111 (1822) integrates fugal texture throughout the first movement, written in sonata form. Sonata form is a Musical form that has been used widely since the early Classical period. Fugues are also found in the Missa Solemnis and in the finale of the Ninth Symphony. The Missa solemnis in D Major Op 123 was composed by Ludwig van Beethoven from 1819-1823 The Symphony No 9 in D minor Op 125 "Choral" is the last complete Symphony composed by Ludwig van Beethoven.

One manual explicitly stated that the hallmark of contrapuntal style was the style of J. S. Bach. The 19th century's taste for academicism - setting of forms and norms by explicit rules - found Marpurg, and the fugue, to be a congenial topic. Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg ( 21 November 1718 - 22 May 1795) was a German music critic, music-theorist and The writing of fugues also remained an important part of musical education throughout the 19th century, particularly with the publication of the complete works of Bach and Handel, and the revival of interest in Bach's music. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section.2 This article is written in British English including maximised use of "-ise"

Examples of fugal writing in the Romantic era are found in the last movement of Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique, and Wagner's Meistersinger, in particular the triple fugue at the conclusion of the second act. Romantic Music is a Musicological term referring to a particular period theory compositional practice and canon in European music history from about 1815 to 1910 An Episode in the Life of the Artist Opus 14 usually referred to by its subtitle Symphonie fantastique ( Fantasy Symphony) is Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (The Mastersingers of Nuremberg) is an Opera in three acts written and composed by Richard Wagner The finale of Giuseppe Verdi's opera Falstaff is a ten-voice fugue. Falstaff is an Operatic commedia lirica in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, adapted by Arrigo Boito from Shakespeare 's plays Felix Mendelssohn was obsessed with fugal writing, as it can be found prominently in the Scottish Symphony, Italian Symphony, and the Hebrides Overture. Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, born and generally known as Felix Mendelssohn (February 3 1809 &ndash November 4 1847 was a German Composer The Symphony No 3 in A Minor op 56 called the "Scottish" Symphony was composed by Felix Mendelssohn. The Symphony No 4 in A major, Op 90, commonly known as the Italian, is an orchestral Symphony written by German Composer The Hebrides Overture (German Die Hebriden) opus 26 also known as Fingal's Cave, is a Concert overture composed by Felix Mendelssohn In the last movement of his Fifth Symphony Anton Bruckner wrote the development section in form of a big double fugue. The Symphony No 5 in B flat major (WAB 105 of Anton Bruckner was written in 1875 &ndash 6, with a few minor changes over the next few years Anton Bruckner (4 September 1824 &ndash 11 October 1896 was an Austrian composer known primarily for his symphonies, masses, and Motets The unfinished Finale of his Ninth Symphony has a fugue section, too. Anton Bruckner 's Symphony No 9 in D minor is the last Symphony upon which he worked leaving the last movement incomplete at the time of his death in 1896. Another composer of this time, whose work is strongly influenced by fugal textures, was Felix Draeseke. Felix August Bernhard Draeseke ( October 7 1835 &ndash February 26 1913) was a Composer of the "New German School" admiring Especially in his church music highly artificial fugues could be found.

Robert Schumann, and Johannes Brahms also included fugues in many of their works. Robert Schumann, sometimes given as Robert Alexander Schumann (June 8 1810 &ndash July 29 1856 was a German Composer, Aesthete and influential Music critic Johannes Brahms ( pronounced ˈbʁaːms (May 7 1833 &ndash April 3 1897 was a German Composer The final part of Schumann's Piano Quintet is a double fugue, and his opus numbers 126, 72 and 60 are all sets of fugues for the piano (opus 60 based on the BACH motif). The Piano Quintet in E flat major, Op 44 by Robert Schumann was written in 1842 In Music, the BACH motif is the sequence of notes B flat A C B natural. The recapitulation of Liszt's B minor sonata is cast in the form of a 3-part fugato. The Quasi-Faust movement of Charles-Valentin Alkan's Grande Sonate contains a bizarre but musically convincing fugue in 9 parts. Charles-Valentin Alkan ( November 30 1813 &ndash March 29 1888) was a French Composer and one of the greatest Virtuoso Grande sonate 'Les quatre âges' ( French for Grand sonata The Four Ages) is a four movement Sonata for Piano by Charles-Valentin Alkan Brahms' Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel ends with a fugue, as does his Cello Sonata No. 1. The Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel, Op 24 is a work for solo Piano written by Johannes Brahms in 1861 a set of twenty-five variations and The Cello Sonata No 1 in E minor, Op 38 written by Johannes Brahms in 1862 &ndash 5 has three movements Allegro non troppo in Towards the end of the Romantic era, Richard Strauss included a fugue in his tone poem, Also sprach Zarathustra, to represent the high intelligence of science. Richard Georg Strauss (11 June 1864 &ndash 8 September 1949 was a German Composer of the late Romantic era and early modern era particularly noted Also sprach Zarathustra op 30 is a Tone poem by Richard Strauss, composed in 1896 and inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche 's book Sergei Rachmaninoff, despite writing in a lush post-romantic idiom, was highly skilled in counterpoint (as is highly evident in his Vespers); a well known fugue occurs in his Symphony No. 2. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff (Сергей Васильевич Рахманинов For the liturgical service see All-night vigil The All-Night Vigil (Всенощное бдение Vsenoshchnoe bdenie) Opus 37 Sergei Rachmaninoff composed his Symphony No 2 in E minor Op 27 in 1906–07 Alexander Glazunov wrote a very difficult Prelude and Fugue in D minor, his Op. Aleksandr Konstantinovich Glazunov (Александр Константинович Глазунов Aleksandr Konstantinovič Glazunov; Glazounov Glasunow &ndash 21 March 62, for the piano.

20th century

The late Romantic composer Max Reger had the closest association with the fugue among his contemporaries. Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger ( March 19 1873 &ndash May 11 1916) was a German Composer, conductor Many of his organ works contain, or are themselves fugues. Two of Reger's most-played orchestral works, the Hiller variations and the Mozart variations, end with a large-scale orchestral fugue.

A number of other twentieth century composers made extensive use of the fugue. Béla Bartók opened his Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta with a fugue in which the tritone, rather than the fifth, is the main structural interval. Béla Viktor János Bartók (March 25 1881&ndashSeptember 26 1945 was a Hungarian Composer and Pianist, considered to be one of the greatest Music for Strings Percussion and Celesta Sz 106 BB 114 is one of the best-known compositions by the Hungarian Composer Béla Bartók The tritone ( Tri - or three and tone) is a Musical interval that spans three whole tones. He also included fugal sections in the final movements of his String Quartet No. 1, String Quartet No. 5, Concerto for Orchestra, and Piano Concerto No. 3. The String Quartet No 1 in A minor by Béla Bartók was completed in 1909 The String Quartet No 5 Sz 102 BB 110 by Béla Bartók was written between August 6 and September 6, 1934. Concerto for Orchestra ( Sz 116 BB 127 is a five-movement musical work for orchestra composed by Béla Bartók in 1943 Béla Bartók's Piano Concerto No 3 in E major Sz 119 BB 127 is a musical composition for piano with orchestral accompaniment The second movement of his Sonata for Solo Violin is also a fugue. The Sonata for Solo Violin Sz 117 BB 124 is a sonata for unaccompanied Violin composed by Béla Bartók. The Czech composer Jaromir Weinberger studied fugue with Max Reger, and had an uncommonly facile skill in fugal writing. Jaromír Weinberger ( January 8, 1896 – August 8, 1967) was a Czech American Composer. The fugue of the "Polka and Fugue" from his opera "Schwanda the Bagpiper" is an example.

Igor Stravinsky also incorporated fugues into his works, including the Symphony of Psalms and the Dumbarton Oaks concerto. Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (Игорь Фёдорович Стравинский) ( &ndash 6 April 1971 was a Russian born Composer, considered by many to The Symphony of Psalms by Igor Stravinsky was written in 1930 and was commissioned by Serge Koussevitzky to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Boston Concerto in E-flat (Dumbarton Oaks (1937-38 is a chamber concerto by Igor Stravinsky, named for the Dumbarton Oaks estate of Robert Woods Bliss The last movement of Samuel Barber's famous Sonata for Piano is a sort of "modernized" fugue, which, instead of obeying the constraint of a fixed number of voices, develops the fugue subject and its head-motif in various contrapuntal situations. A movement is a self-contained part of a Musical composition or Musical form. Samuel Osborne Barber II ( March 9, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was an American Composer of Orchestral, Opera, Elliott Carter uses a fugue for the second movement of his Piano Sonata (1945–1946). Elliott Cook Carter Jr (born in New York City on December 11, 1908) is an American Composer from New York City. In a different direction, the tonal fugue movement of Charles Ives' fourth symphony evokes a nostalgia for an older, halcyon time. Charles Edward Ives (October 20 1874 – May 19 1954 was an American Composer of modernist Classical music. The practice of writing fugue cycles in the manner of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier was perpetuated by Paul Hindemith in his Ludus Tonalis, Kaikhosru Sorabji in a number of his works including the Opus clavicembalisticum, and Dmitri Shostakovich in his Preludes and Fugues, opus 87 (which, like the Well-Tempered Clavier, contains a prelude and fugue in each key, although the order of Shostakovich's pieces follows the cycle of fifths, whereas Bach's progressed chromatically). Paul Hindemith (16 November 1895 &ndash 28 December 1963 was a German Composer, Violist, violinist teacher music theorist and conductor. Ludus Tonalis ("Play of Tones" or "Tonal Game" subtitled "Kontrapunktische tonal und Klaviertechnische Übungen: counterpoint tonal and technical Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji ( August 14, 1892 &ndash October 15, 1988) was a British Parsi Composer, music journalist Opus Clavicembalisticum is a solo piano piece composed by Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji, completed on June 26, 1930. Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich ( Russian: ru Дмитрий Дмитриевич Шостакович ( &ndash 9 August 1975 was a Russian Composer The 24 Preludes and Fugues Op 87 by Dmitri Shostakovich are a cycle of piano pieces written in each major and minor key of the Chromatic scale Several Bachianas Brasileiras of Heitor Villa-Lobos feature a fugue as one of the movements. The Bachianas brasileiras constitute a series of nine suites by the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos, written for various combinations of instruments and voices Heitor Villa-Lobos (March 5 1887 &ndash November 17 1959 was a Brazilian Composer, possibly the best-known classical composer born in South America Ástor Piazzolla also wrote a number of fugues in his Nuevo tango style. Ástor Pantaleón Piazzolla ( March 11, 1921 &ndash July 4, 1992) was an Argentine tango Composer and Astor Piazzolla 1975png|thumb|left|the musical father of "nuevo tango" Bandoneón virtuoso Ástor Piazzolla. György Ligeti wrote a Fugue for his "Requiem" (1966), which consists of a 5 part fugue in which each part (S,M,A,T,B) is subsequently divided in four voices that make a canon.

Benjamin Britten composed a fugue for orchestra in his The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, consisting of subject entries by each instrument once. Edward Benjamin Britten Baron Britten, OM CH (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976 was an English Composer, conductor, This article is about the composition by Benjamin Britten for information about the television series see Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. Leonard Bernstein wrote a "Cool Fugue" as part of his musical West Side Story. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes West Side Story is a musical by Arthur Laurents (book Leonard Bernstein (music and Stephen Sondheim (lyrics Stephen Schwartz wrote a song from his 1974 Broadway hit The Magic Show called "The Goldfarb Variations" which uses fugue-like vocal counterpoint. Stephen Lawrence Schwartz (born March 6, 1948) is an American Musical theater lyricist and Composer. The Magic Show is a musical in one act composed and with lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Bob Randall (who also wrote Jazz musician Alec Templeton even wrote a fugue (recorded subsequently by Benny Goodman): "Bach Goes to Town. Alec Templeton (b July 4, 1909, Cardiff Wales - d March 28, 1963, Greenwich Connecticut) was a pianist and satirist " Canadian pianist Glenn Gould composed So You Want to Write a Fugue?, a full-scale fugue set to a text that cleverly explicates its own musical form. Glenn Herbert Gould At a young age he reportedly behaved differently from typical children at the piano he would strike single notes and listen to their long decay John Cage wrote a fugue for unpitched percussion instruments which substitutes complex rhythmic ratios for key areas. WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> John Milton Cage Jr

20th-century fugue writing explored many of the directions implied by Beethoven's Grosse Fuge, and what came to be termed "free counterpoint" as well as "dissonant counterpoint. The Große Fuge is a single-movement composition for String quartet by Ludwig van Beethoven famous for its extreme technical demands on the players as well as for " Fugal technique as described by Marpurg became part of the theoretical basis for Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique. Arnold Schoenberg ( pronounced ˈʃøːnbɛrk (13 September 1874 &ndash 13 July 1951 was an Austrian and later American Composer, associated with Twelve-tone technique (also dodecaphony, especially in British usage twelve-note composition) is a method of musical composition devised by Arnold Indeed, the aforementioned Glenn Gould, wrote a 12-tone Fugue in his Bassoon Sonata (later arranged for Flute and Piano) in 1950. The bassoon is a Woodwind instrument in the Double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and Tenor registers and occasionally The flute is a Musical instrument of the Woodwind family Unlike other woodwind instruments a flute is a Reedless wind instrument that produces its The piano is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard that produces sound by striking steel strings with Felt covered hammers In this Fugue, the Subject in the Bassoon later becomes the Answer in the Piano at the Tritone. It is important to note that Gould wrote traditional tonal-style canons with his rows as opposed to adopting Webern-like canonic principles where the tone row dictates the phrase entry. In Music, a tone row or note row ( German: Reihe or Tonreihe) also series and set, refers to a non-repetitive WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> Anton Webern (December 3 1883 &ndash September 15 1945 was an Austrian Composer

Is the fugue a musical form or texture?

A widespread view of the fugue is that it is not a musical form (in the sense that, say, sonata form is) but rather a technique of composition. Sonata form is a Musical form that has been used widely since the early Classical period. For instance, Donald Francis Tovey wrote that "Fugue is not so much a musical form as a musical texture," that can be introduced anywhere as a distinctive and recognizable technique, often to produce intensification in musical development. Sir Donald Francis Tovey (17 July 1875 &ndash 10 July 1940 was a British musical analyst, musicologist, writer on Music, Composer

On the other hand, composers almost never write music in a purely cumulative fashion, and usually a work will have some kind of overall formal organization—hence the rough outline given above, involving the exposition, the sequence of episodes, and the concluding coda. When scholars say that the fugue is not a musical form, what is usually meant is that there is no single formal outline into which all fugues reliably can be fitted.

The Austrian musicologist Erwin Ratz argues that the formal organization of a fugue involves not only the arrangement of its theme and episodes, but also its harmonic structure. Erwin Ratz (1898 - 1973 was an Austrian Musicologist and music theorist. In particular, the exposition and coda tend to emphasize the tonic key, whereas the episodes usually explore more distant tonalities. The tonic is the first note of a musical scale in the tonal method of Musical composition. However, it is to be noted that while certain related keys are more commonly explored in fugal development, the overall structure of a fugue does not limit its harmonic structure as much as Ratz would have us believe. In Music, a closely related key is one sharing many common tones with the original key For example, a fugue may not even explore the dominant, one of the most closely related keys to the tonic. Bach's Fugue in Bb from the Well Tempered Clavier explores the relative minor, the supertonic and the subdominant. In Music, the relative minor of a particular major key (or the Relative major of a minor key is the key which has the same Key signature but In Music or Music theory, the supertonic is the second degree or note of a Diatonic scale (in other words immediately "above" In Music, the subdominant is the technical name for the fourth tonal degree of the Diatonic scale. This is unlike later forms such as the sonata, which clearly prescribes which keys are explored (typically the tonic and dominant in an ABA form).

Fugues are also not limited in the way the exposition is structured, the number of expositions in related keys, or the number of episodes (if any). So, the fugue may be considered a compositional practice rather than a compositional form, similar to the invention. In Music, an invention is a short composition (usually for a Keyboard instrument) with two-part Counterpoint. The fugue, like the invention and sinfonia, employs a basic melodic subject and spins out additional melodic material from it to develop an entire piece. The Inventions and Sinfonias, BWV 772-801 also known as the Two and Three Part Inventions, are a collection of thirty short keyboard compositions Fugual technique is really just a way to develop pieces of a particular contrapuntal style.

Perceptions and aesthetics

Fugue is the most complex of contrapuntal forms and as a result, gifted composers have used it to express the profound. The philosopher Theodor Adorno, a skilled pianist and interpreter of Beethoven's music, expressed a sense of the arduousness and also the inauthenticity of modern fugue composition, or any composing of fugue in a contemporary context, i. Theodor Ludwig Wiesengrund Adorno ( September 11, 1903 &ndash August 6, 1969) was a German -born international sociologist e. , as an anachronism. An anachronism (from the Greek "ana" " ανά " "against anti-" and "chronos" " χρόνος " Adorno's conservative and historically bound view of Bach is not found among most modern fugue composers, such as David Diamond, Paul Hindemith or Dmitri Shostakovich. David Leo Diamond ( July 9 1915 &ndash June 13 2005) was an American Composer of classical music. Paul Hindemith (16 November 1895 &ndash 28 December 1963 was a German Composer, Violist, violinist teacher music theorist and conductor. Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich ( Russian: ru Дмитрий Дмитриевич Шостакович ( &ndash 9 August 1975 was a Russian Composer The most classicist fugues that have appeared after Beethoven are those of Felix Mendelssohn, who as a child impressed Goethe and others with his mastery of counterpoint while improvising at the piano. ˈjoːhan ˈvɔlfgaŋ fɔn ˈgøːtə (in English generally ˈgɝːtə 28 August 1749 22 March 1832 was a German writer In the words of Ratz, "fugal technique significantly burdens the shaping of musical ideas, and it was given only to the greatest geniuses, such as Bach and Beethoven, to breathe life into such an unwieldy form and make it the bearer of the highest thoughts. "^[31]

In presenting Bach's fugues as among the greatest of contrapuntal works, Peter Kivy points out that "counterpoint itself, since time out of mind, has been associated in the thinking of musicians with the profound and the serious"^[32] and argues that "there seems to be some rational justification for their doing so. "^[33] Because of the way fugue is often taught, the form can be seen as dry and filled with laborious technical exercises. The term "school fugue" is used for a very strict form of the fugue that was created to facilitate teaching.

Others, such as Alfred Mann, argued that fugue writing, by focusing the compositional process actually improves or disciplines the composer towards musical ideas. This is related to the idea that restrictions create freedom for the composer, by directing their efforts. He also points out that fugue writing has its roots in improvisation, and was, during the baroque, practiced as an improvisatory art.

References

External links

• Downloadable PDFs of J.S. Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier on Mutopia
• Analysis of the Well-Tempered Clavier (requires Shockwave)
• Theory on fugues
• Fugues and Fugue Sets