The Classical Music Book

110

within far more rigorous structures,

which allow for very rich listening

experiences. The basic structure of

a fugue requires a melody known

as the “subject” to be presented by

the first voice in the home key. The

next voice then presents the same

melody but starting on the fifth

note of the scale being used, and

this is known as the “answer.”

When replying to this, the original

voice plays a “counter-subject,”

which may be very contrasting.

The third voice then enters with

the “subject” again, starting on the

same note in a different octave,

while the second voice now

performs the counter-subject and

the first voice will usually play free

material derived from the subject.

This continues in the same way

until all the voices have entered,

creating an exposition that

moves rapidly from simplicity to

complexity, while using limited

musical material.

The fugue will then progress

by adding mood-changing

“episodes,” again often derived

from the opening material. The

middle section, in turn, presents

the subject in different keys and

formats until the work returns to

the opening key. However, further

variants heighten this journey, such

as the “stretto,” where subjects and

answers enter before the previous

ones have been resolved.

Teaching tools

In writing the 48 fugues of The

Well-Tempered Clavier, Bach offered

a compendium of techniques to be

studied by both keyboard players

and composers. These were

designed as teaching tools, and

although they are often performed

in concert halls, they are not as

powerful as his organ fugues or

those found in his sacred music.

However, they had a considerable

influence on later composers, who

dubbed them the “Old Testament”

of music (the Beethoven sonatas

were the New Testament) and paid

tribute to them; Shostakovich, for

instance, composed 24 Preludes

and Fugues. Even now, pianists

study Bach’s The Well-Tempered

Clavier as part of their training.

Bach’s fascination with

counterpoint did not merely focus

on the fugue. His suites of dance

movements rely on an understanding

of counterpoint for their inner

energy; even when the music is for

solo violin or cello, it often hints at

what the other voices would play

if there were more instruments by

injecting notes and phrases in

different registers.

Bach was similarly attracted

to canons, where one voice follows

the exact melodic contour of the

other but slightly later (the round,

“London’s Burning” is an example

of this). His use of this technique is

Ceaseless work, analysis,

reflection, writing much,

endless self-correction,

that is my secret.

Johann Sebastian Bach

BAROQUE COUNTERPOINT

In a fugue, a word derived from the

Latin for “flight,” each of three or more

voices enter one after the other, imitating

and modifying the initial theme. The

structure illustrated here has many

other possible variants.

Structure: The fugue

Soprano

Alto

Bass

EXPOSITION EPISODE MIDDLE SECTION EPISODE FINAL SECTION CODA

S CS FP

A CS CS

FP

S FP FP FP S CS

S FP FP FP

FP FP FP A

FP CS FP FP

FP FP S FP FP

FP FP FP S TP

A

Key

S = Subject—The principal theme of the fugue.

A = Answer—The subject, repeated a fifth (5 notes) higher.

CS = Counter-Subject—A contrasting secondary theme.

FP = Free Part—Material based on the first theme.

TP = Tonic Pedal—Sustained final bass note.

US_108-111_JS_Bach_Fugue.indd 110 26/03/18 1:00 PM