Can Anyone Give Me Some More Help!? Options

[Andy1]

Sorry to keep asking for advice/help, i have decided to play J.S Bachs prelude(1) in c maj for an exam but i was wondering about dynamics-can anyone offer any suggestions, at the mo i play it building up to a cresc about 2 thirds through. Would it be a bad idea to use the pedal on the piano this isnt marked on the music but they didnt have them during the baroque period did they?

[amanda41]

Hi There!

Actually pianos were around in Bach's time although they were still a novelty. Bach himself wasn't keen on it though - he preferred the harpsichord.

Some versions of this piece include pedal markings and others don't. It wouldnt neccessarily be bad to pedal, alhough personally I think by not pedalling it helps develop a good legato technique and makes the piece sound less fussy. Try putting a little emphasis on the 3rd, 6th, 11th and 14th semiquaver (right hand) in each bar. These are all the same notes and if you do this without accenting them to much (just sort of leaning on them a bit more) it helps the piece to flow along nicely. As the piece requires you to hold both left hand notes for two minims in each bar, using the pedal might lose some of the clarity and you end up getting that muffled sound.

Regarding dynamics - as this would have been written for harpsichord, any dynamics written on your copy are editorial and not set in stone, so it's just a matter of personal taste really. I do the dynamics differently every time I play this! Perhaps try to build it up loud enough before the end so you can bring it back down to piano on the last chord with plenty of time to spare. Sometimes if you start a decrescendo too quietly no one notices it!

Hope this helps - enjoy!

Amanda xx

[Andy1]

Thankyou so much!