Six Little Preludes (Bach)

The Six Little Preludes (BWV 933-938) are a group of preludes written by the composer Johann Sebastian Bach for harpsichord. They are all short, pedagogical efforts written in or around the period of 1717–1720, but they were not published until 1802. These pieces are all short but require a strong understanding of technique. The preludes are a part of Bach's 18 Kleine Präludien (18 Little Preludes), which also contains the Twelve Little Preludes.^[1] Bach sporadically produced the pieces around 1717–1720, primarily for instructive purposes. They were not intended for public performance, rather as an aid to his son's compositional development.^[2]

Little Prelude in C major, BWV 933

Little Prelude in C major, BWV 933 played on a harpsichord by Gérard Janot

The C major prelude consists of two brief sections, repeated as a pair, followed by a variation on each section, again repeated as a pair.^[3] The first segment demands complete independence of the right and left hands, with the left hand providing a busy accompaniment. The bass material becomes more rudimentary in the second segment, as the treble adopts f of this prelude makes minimal changes to the basic material, mainly brightening it by lifting the slightly altered melody into a higher register.

Little Prelude in C minor, BWV 934

Little Prelude in C Minor, BWV 934 played on a harpsichord by Gérard Janot

This C minor effort is similar to a minuet.^[4] It features a lively angular theme. The theme and second subject are played through twice and vary considerably on their third appearance. This piece generally lasts just over a minute if no repetitions are performed.

Little Prelude in D minor, BWV 935

The Little Prelude in D minor contains features that are similar to a two-part invention.^[5] This work generally lasts about a minute and a half. This prelude is one of the more difficult ones of the set, featuring a constant flurry of notes. The second section of this piece deals with keys of F major and G minor, before transitioning back to the dark key of d minor.

Little Prelude in D major, BWV 936

This Prelude has features associated with a trio sonata: it contains two upper lines and a roving bass part underpinning them.^[6] The work opens with a lively theme. It is played through twice, then varied on its third appearance, showing much development.

Little Prelude in E major, BWV 937

Unlike Prelude in E minor, this piece is interpreting a more lively scenario indicating that it is major, though Bach's frequently used mordents are not as common in this prelude.^[7]

Little Prelude in E minor, BWV 938

This E minor prelude contains features similar to the composer's inventions.^[8] Bach follows a pattern used in many of the pieces in the set, in presenting the main thematic material twice in more or less the same form, then developing it. This piece is approximately one-and-a-half minutes long.

In popular culture

In the puzzle game Portal 2 by Valve, a transposed version of Little Prelude in C minor, titled "Machiavellian Bach",^[9] is featured in the game's soundtrack during a segment towards the latter half of the game's story.^[10]^[11]

References

^ "18 Kleine Präludien (Bach, Johann Sebastian)". International Music Sheet Library Project (IMSLP). Archived from the original on 25 October 2017. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
^ "Bach - Eighteen Little Preludes". Neil A Kjos Music Company. Archived from the original on 7 September 2021. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
^ BWV 933 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 1, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)
^ BWV 934 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 2, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)
^ BWV 935 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 3, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)
^ BWV 936 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 4, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)
^ BWV 937 in The Mutopia Project:[1]
^ BWV 938 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 6, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)
^ "Machiavellian Bach - Portal 2 aka Little Prelude 2 by Johann Sebastian Bach Chords, Melody, and Music Theory Analysis - Hooktheory". www.hooktheory.com. Retrieved 2024-04-10.
^ "Portal 2: Songs To Test By (Collector's Edition) due next month". Eurogamer.net. 2012-09-25. Retrieved 2024-04-10.
^ rawmeatcowboy (2022-11-09). "Portal 2 vinyl soundtrack now available". GoNintendo. Retrieved 2024-04-10.

External links

Video of the Six Little Preludes performed by Benjamin Alard: https://youtube.com/watch?v=vhxOODKpXmA
6 Kleine Präludien: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project

[1] "18 Kleine Präludien (Bach, Johann Sebastian)". International Music Sheet Library Project (IMSLP). Archived from the original on 25 October 2017. Retrieved 7 September 2021.

[2] "Bach - Eighteen Little Preludes". Neil A Kjos Music Company. Archived from the original on 7 September 2021. Retrieved 7 September 2021.

[3] BWV 933 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 1, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)

[4] BWV 934 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 2, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)

[5] BWV 935 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 3, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)

[6] BWV 936 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 4, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)

[7] BWV 937 in The Mutopia Project:[1]

[8] BWV 938 in The Mutopia Project: Praeludium Nr. 6, by J. S. Bach (1685–1750)

[9] "Machiavellian Bach - Portal 2 aka Little Prelude 2 by Johann Sebastian Bach Chords, Melody, and Music Theory Analysis - Hooktheory". www.hooktheory.com. Retrieved 2024-04-10.

[10] "Portal 2: Songs To Test By (Collector's Edition) due next month". Eurogamer.net. 2012-09-25. Retrieved 2024-04-10.

[11] rawmeatcowboy (2022-11-09). "Portal 2 vinyl soundtrack now available". GoNintendo. Retrieved 2024-04-10.

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v t e Compositions for organ, keyboard and lute by Johann Sebastian Bach
Organ	Fugue in G minor, BWV 131a (doubtful) Sonatas, BWV 525–530 Prelude and Fugue in C major, BWV 531 Prelude and Fugue in D major, BWV 532 Fantasia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 537 Toccata and Fugue in D minor ("Dorian"), BWV 538 Toccata and Fugue in F major, BWV 540 Fantasia and Fugue in G minor ("Great"), BWV 542 Prelude and Fugue in A minor, BWV 543 Prelude and Fugue in B minor, BWV 544 Prelude and Fugue in C minor, BWV 546 Prelude and Fugue in E minor ("Wedge"), BWV 548 Eight Short Preludes and Fugues, BWV 553–560 (doubtful) Fantasia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 562 Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C major, BWV 564 Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565 (doubtful) Prelude (Toccata) and Fugue in E major, BWV 566 Fantasia ("Pièce d'Orgue") in G major, BWV 572 Fugue in G minor ("Little"), BWV 578 Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 582 Concertos, BWV 592–597 Orgelbüchlein, BWV 599–644 Schübler Chorales, BWV 645–650 Great Eighteen Chorale Preludes, BWV 651–668 Chorale partita Sei gegrüßet, Jesu gütig, BWV 768 Canonic Variations on "Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her", BWV 769 Neumeister chorales, BWV 1090–1120 Chorale fantasia Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält, BWV 1128
Keyboard	Inventions and Sinfonias, BWV 772–801 English Suites, BWV 806–811 French Suites, BWV 812–817 Partitas, BWV 825–830 No. 2 No. 4 No. 6 Overture in the French style, BWV 831 Well-Tempered Clavier, BWV 846–893 Book 1 No. 1 in C major No. 2 in C minor No. 3 in C♯ major No. 4 in C♯ minor No. 7 in E♭ major No. 10 in E minor No. 16 in G minor No. 21 in B♭ major No. 22 in B♭ minor Book 2 No. 1 in C major No. 2 in C minor No. 3 in C♯ major No. 4 in C♯ minor No. 5 in D major No. 6 in D minor No. 12 in F minor No. 13 in F♯ major No. 18 in G♯ minor No. 22 in B♭ minor No. 24 in B minor Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue Fantasia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 906 Toccatas, BWV 910–916 Six Little Preludes, BWV 933–938 Italian Concerto Harpsichord solo concertos Goldberg Variations discography Gould recording Aria variata alla maniera italiana Capriccio on the departure of a beloved brother
Lute	Suite in G minor, BWV 995 Suite in E minor, BWV 996 Bourrée Suite in C minor, BWV 997 Prelude, Fugue and Allegro in E♭ major, BWV 998 Prelude in C minor, BWV 999 Fugue in G minor, BWV 1000
Mixed collections	Clavier-Übung III: Prelude and Fugue in E♭ major ("St. Anne"), BWV 552, Chorale preludes, BWV 669–689, Duets, BWV 802–805 Concerto transcriptions, BWV 592–596 and 972–987 Klavierbüchlein W. F. Bach Notebook A. M. Bach Twelve Little Preludes
List of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach List of fugal works by Johann Sebastian Bach List of concertos by Johann Sebastian Bach

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