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Happy Sad Sad Happy |
Book II
Scores available at Patreon |
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Bach
transcribed Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater and replaced the text with a
paraphrase of Psalm 51. The lyricist had to take affective logic into
account. Lively musical word paintings can be found in Pergolesi's Stabat mater. In versus 16 the word “wounds” (in the Latin of Pergolesi's text: plagas) is central. With Bach that has become “fame” (German: Ruhm). No words that at first glance seem logically and affectively interchangeable. Both words “Wunden” and “Rhum” have been set to music by Bach more than thirty times, sometimes with great emphasis. Here is a brief inventory of the affective qualifications that Eduard van Hengel gave to Cantate pieces in which these words occur, (this music also sometimes involves new text on existing music): |
How to bring this together? There are opposites: lament - joy, archaic - modern, rest - festive, balance - disturbance. The relationship between words and emotions is complex. There is a wide range of expressions. There can be logic, but the result is not always clear. As a listener you are sometimes puzzled. This is not art with unambiguous meanings. Just as life and the world itself. On this page you can find the preludes and fugues of Bach's second compilation of pieces in all keys, of which I reversed the signature key from major to minor and vive versa. |
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Wounds: BWV 5 - 2 Intimate, tormented BWV 7 - 1 Solemn, rippling BWV 12 - 4 Serious, laborious BWV 31 - 4 Solemn, with dignity BWV 46 - 6 Lamentable BWV 78 - 5 Difficult harmonies, with passion, trembling motives. BWV 101 - 6 Sweet and plaintive BWV 103 - 3 Desperate, ambivalent BWV 113 - 8 Gloomy BWV 136 - 5 Music dances with cheerful tone, text serious. BWV 145 - 2 Passionate Liberation BWV 159 - 5 Calmness, balance, solitude, absence of any tension. BWV 164 - 2 Disturbing BWV 168 - 6 Serious BWV 182 - 7 Includes the paradox that suffering is a joy. BWV 199 - 6 Consolation song, sorrowful heart. BWV 199 - 7 Mystical discourse - merry song BWV 244 - 51 Bewilderment, powerlessness BWV 244 - 52 Aggressive BWV 244 - 54 Adoration BWV 245 - 11 Parody, extremely surprising is the place where we find this aria with this text in the passion. Musicologists owe a statement. |
Fame: BWV 26 - 3 Rest BWV 36b - 8 Long drawn out cheerful gavotte BWV 41 - 6 Fanfare BWV 51 - 1 Spectacular bravura aria, exuberant joy BWV 69 - 3 An intimate and personal song of thanksgiving, a pastoral character. BWV 94 - 3 Serene rest and a busy world BWV 120 - 2 Exuberant BWV 125 - 6 Simple, full of expectations BWV 135 - 6 Thoughtful praise BWV 167 - 1 Quiet pastoral creates an atmosphere of settled gratitude. BWV 171 - 1 In strict archaizing motet style. BWV 190 - 3 Relaxed, a cheerful hymn in dance form, a polonaise. BWV 190a - 3 Parody, festive BWV 193 - 4 Peace and Justice BWV 195 - 3 Light and accessible music, it is one of Bach's most modern compositions. BWV 207a - 2 Parody, rippling BWV 210 - 5 Music is more powerful than love and death. BWV 213 - 2 Uncertainty BWV 214 -7 Praise and glorification BWV 215 - 7 Generous character BWV 245 - 1 Fierce, dramatic choirs in which Bach expresses the effects of hateful people, hypocritical scribes, indifferent soldiers and teasing bystanders. BWV 248I - 1 Parody, symbolizing royal grandeur and rulership BWV 515 Pleasure and contentment |
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Anna Magdalena |
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![]() The handwriting here is by Anna Magdalena Bach, in an early draft of the sixth prelude. Her calligraphy is very similar to that of Bach, who is renowned for its clarity, efficiency, beauty and musicality. There are several copyists where it is difficult to distinguish between their handwriting and Bach's, especially when it comes to advanced students. Bach's earliest manuscripts are very similar to that of his older brother. So it is possible: writing in Bach's handwriting is certainly on my list of ambitions to learn by imitation. At first I am in awe of Anna Magdalena's achievements. She made copies for sale of Bach's scores, and Bach trusted her to make neat copies of the second WTC. At second glance, the experience is different: it's like suddenly realizing that you've eaten the wrong mushrooms. Anna Magdalena does not take vertical alignment into account. It is a feature that allows you to instantly recognize her writing. Her time-space continuum reminds me of marbled paper. This is very disturbing, how can you hear such a score in visual reading? How did this lack survive? Why has she not been corrected? What did she hear when she copied, did she actually play? |
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