Learn Fugue with Bach
Learn to compose Fugues with the variety of J. S. Bach!
What makes a melody so unique?
How beautiful it is to be able to manage different musical combinations!
How magical it is to unlock the art of variety!
Bach had great Imagination and Creativity!
And he has prepared Five Exercises for you to learn how to Compose Five-Voice Fugues!
Partimento of Exercise n. 5
One of the most astonishing aspects of J.S. Bach's music, leaving every musician in awe, is his ability to create music that is always varied, fresh, and original: never repetitive!
You too can learn this variety with the exercises that Bach has prepared for you in the "Precepts and Principles for Playing the Thorough Bass or Accompanying in Four Parts".
- Discover what you can learn from each of these exercises
- Experience firsthand the colorful variety of each melody
- Become skilled at applying the new skills in your music
Precepts and Principles
Presumed to be the result of J.S. Bach imparting knowledge to one of his students at Leipzig's Thomas-Schule, the Precepts and Principles for Playing the Thorough Bass or Accompanying in Four Parts stands out as a crucial instructional document in Bach's legacy.
This manuscript offers invaluable insights into Bach's teachings on harmony, fugue, and potentially unveils aspects of his compositional process.
The 48-page manuscript, credited to Bach's pupil Carl August Thieme (1721-95), includes instructions in thorough bass realization, studies in fugue writing, and cadence patterns suitable for keyboard practice.
Discover Bach's Plan and the Course Contents!
Frame from Analysis of the Partimento Bass-Line
What you Learn
- Learn how to manage an Hexachordal Subject
- Learn how to write proper 5-part Exposition
- Write your First 5-Part Fugue using the Hexachordal Subject
What's inside
- Analysis of the Fugue (Video + PDF)
- Written Realization (Video + PDF)
- Keyboard Realization (Video + PDF)
All Baroque musicians, including Bach, were very familiar with the hexachord: the true foundation of music theory!
Perhaps that's why the first fugue is built on the hexachord, much like the first fugue of The Well-Tempered Clavier: a coincidence? I don't think so!
Learn to use the hexachord yourself by writing a 5-voice fugue based on this subject.
Subject
Frame from Keyboard Realization of the Fugue
What you Learn
- Learn how to manage a Do Re Mi subject
- Learn how to set the Do Re Mi in a complete exposition
- Write your Second 5-voice Fugue using the Do Re Mi subject
What's inside
- Analysis of the Fugue (Video + PDF)
- Written Realization (Video + PDF)
- Keyboard Realization (Video + PDF)
Do Re Mi!
One of the most idiomatic techniques of Baroque composers is precisely the Do Re Mi opening!
In the third exercise, you will learn to conduct a 5-voice fugue, entirely based on Do Re Mi!
Subject
Frame from Written Realization of the Fugue
What you Learn
- Learn how to manage a Dorian Subject
- Learn to write an exposition in Dorian Mode
- Write your Third 5-part Fugue with a Dorian Subject
What's inside
- Analysis of the Fugue (Video + PDF)
- Written Realization (Video + PDF)
- Keyboard Realization (Video + PDF)
Not D Minor, but Dorian!
Have you ever seen a piece that seems to be in D Minor, but has no B-flat in the key signature?
What if I told you it's a modal piece?
Baroque composers were well-versed in modality and knew how to compose a piece in the ancient style!
And you, do you also want to learn how to compose a fugue in the Dorian Mode?
Subject
Frame from Written Realization of the Fugue
What you Learn
- Learn how to manage a Subject in the Mixolydian mode
- Learn how to write an Answer to a Mixolydian Subject
- Write your Fourth 5-part Fugue using a Mixolydian Subject
What's inside
- Analysis of the Fugue (Video + PDF)
- Written Realization (Video + PDF)
- Keyboard Realization (Video + PDF)
G major without F# in the key!
No! It's not a mistake, it's the Mixolydian mode, one of the most fascinating and interesting at the same time!
And how to compose a fugue in the Mixolydian Mode?
Learn it with this exercise!
Subject
Frame from Keyboard Realization of the Fugue
What you Learn
- Learn how to manage a fast subject
- Learn how to correctly set an alternation of subjects and answers in an Exposition
- Write your Fifth 5-part Fugue combining a fast Subject with its answer
What's inside
- Analysis of the Fugue (Video + PDF)
- Written Realization (Video + PDF)
- Keyboard Realization (Video + PDF)
A continuous stream of (almost) endless notes!
There are Baroque music pieces, like the Toccata in D Minor BWV 538, where from the beginning to the end, it's a continuous stream of 16th notes!
What to do when a subject has so many fast notes in a row? Learn it with this exercise!
Subject
Analyze
How beautiful it is to know how to decode every detail?
Analyze the Partimento Basslines to move to the next step!
Learn to grasp every detail, learn to recognize each musical element, and become skilled at choosing which ones to develop in order to carry out your realization with the ability of a great Master!
Write
Scripta Manent, Verba Volant!
Nothing is better than writing to firmly fix every step!
Starting from the analysis, learn to create the perfect written realization, learn to transform the melody you have in mind into notes, and discover how to make a melody more interesting simply by applying some diminutions
Play
The written realization is not enough!
A true Musicus Practicus is skilled enough to develop a realization directly at the keyboard.
Learn how to speed up the realization process at the keyboard, learn how to transform a complex passage into a hand pattern, and discover how to make a compositional technique comfortable for the keyboard.
Videos
There are details that, if you don't learn to see them, you will never see them!
Triple perspective!
Capture every element: Watch as I write on the tablet!
Watch my hands: just imitate my fingers and positions!
Let's look at each other: after all, we also want to have fun together!
PDFs
Insights often come later!
Take notes on the worksheet: it's the best way to remember important things!
Keep it with you at all times: in those 10 minutes of break, you might notice something more!
Broaden your vision: allow your brain to rethink that passage, and you'll see that it will find the answer!
Check
And if you want to be sure you're proceeding correctly?
Post a photo of your realization in the community within the course, get your personal feedback, I'll respond to you, and continue your journey with more determination knowing you're on the right track!
The True Musicus Practicus is always looking for new Secrets, Tricks and Techniques!
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