ive just been bought this book by Bach by my parents. they dont no much bout music and just picked it up. ive only ever played one of his basic preludes. i was wondering if any of you have played his pieces and could recommend any of them if you have, cuz theres loads to choose from and i cant decide where to start. thanx

Bach is awesome!!!
Um...try Prelude and Fugue in D minor, (Well-Tempered Clavier Book II)
and Prelude and Fugue in G major, (same book), any of his partitas and suites are awesome too...

Bach is wonderful !!
But you don't say what grade you are. A lot of his music is quite difficult.

If you are around grade 5 you might try a couple of the two-part Inventions. Your two hands need to be quite independent to play these well. The French Suites are very varied, and have quite a range of difficulty, some of the minuets are not too difficult.

Hope this is useful.

Maggie

Bach rocks, but it ain't easy! but then, I am a pants pianist... I like playing his flute stuff though.

i'm in uni and right now im doin bach's prelude in D minor. its got lots of right hand work (triplets all the ways through) which is great for me since im left handed but it still teaches how to bring out the left hand melody...its a great prelude but its quite repetitive so ive had to learn how to vary it etc which has taught me quite a bit.
Linz x

french suites, english suites.
or if you can find a violinist, his violin-piano sonatas.
but fugues are the best. i have an overwhelming sense of achievement when i manage to play his fugues.

Hey, there - just starting to play Bach, eh? (Probably not anymore! - I note that this post began in August!) There are loads of cool Bach songs - for example there is Two-Part Invention, No. 12 in A Major; Two-Part Invention, No. 6 in E Major; Invention No. 13 (not sure if it's "Two-Part"! {does that mean two pages?}) and the perhaps annoying (but some people like it) Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1, Prelude 1 - you know, the ones off those mobile phones! And lastly, there is the famous Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, but you may have a bit of trouble playing it, as it's on organ.

Of course, it all depends on what Bach you are talking about... the previously listed ones are by Johann Sebastian Bach, but there are other Bachs... for example, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach and his famous Solfeggietto.

Well anyway, just try them out, see what you think. Or alternatively, you could just go through a massive book of Bach and then play every single one...

QUOTE (Wobby @ Jan 16 2005, 07:36 PM)

Hey, there - just starting to play Bach, eh? (Probably not anymore! - I note that this post began in August!)

erm no, this topic started yesterday!

QUOTE

I note that this post began in August!

Did it? It looks very much like 15th January to me...

Oops, maybe it did... sorry, my mistake - I read the joining date

QUOTE (Wobby @ Jan 16 2005, 07:52 PM)

Oops, maybe it did... sorry, my mistake - I read the joining date  :lol:

Would you like in French as you are so good at French????

Sorry about the previous post.

I like Bach's work but, I am not that advance at playing yet. Is there any grade 2 versions of his works?

IMO Liszt is easier than Bach : in Bach some things are quite awkward!!!!

well tempered clavier 1 prelude 1 is not too hard

That was once on a grade 5 syllabus, I think, though I'm not sure it is actually that difficult. Lovely, lovely piece though.

QUOTE (cecilia @ Jan 16 2005, 11:07 PM)

That was once on a grade 5 syllabus, I think, though I'm not sure it is actually that difficult. Lovely, lovely piece though.

grade 5? woohoo! I can play it. assuming I have got the right title to the piece... the one that has had Ave Maria set over it? lots of arpeggiated stuff?

Hi Sarah I'm learning that one too, I'm also learning one of the two part inventions. I prefer the two part invention to the prelude.

What do I think of Bach? He was quite good at music... between having 20 children (that we know about) and testing organs all over the place... Nahhhh...hey, no inuendoes...I mean those gorgeous Silbermann instruments, while he was working on equal temperament, and when he wasn't walking 200 miles to watch Buxtehude playing the grand woohoo.
Yep. he was all right. Knew his stuff.

I love Bach, but hardly ever play his music on the piano. My favourite pieces are mostly motets, cantatas, passions and the B minor Mass, but include some keyboard music, top of which are his B minor sonata for flute and keyboard and the trio sonata from the Musical Offering, in which Frederick the Great's theme comes back in the last movement. These ought to be be played on harpsichord, however, as should the Italian Concerto; the 48 are probably best on clavichord.

I'm not convinced his all-keys temperament was equal. It would be interesting to find out whether the 48 reveal any intervals that were avoided and see whether they would have been wolf tunings in any of the plausible "well-temperaments" that were around at the time.

QUOTE

It would be interesting to find out whether the 48 reveal any intervals that were avoided

I'll take a year off sometime and investigate!

I too love the choral works, motets and cantatas,
not to mention organ works, solo concerti, Brandenburgs etc etc.

Does anyone know who said
"for Bach, the fugue was the natural form of expression" ?

an amazing thought to those of us who struggle to write fugues as an academic excercise.

Maggie

QUOTE (maggiemay @ Jan 17 2005, 04:21 PM)

QUOTE It would be interesting to find out whether the 48 reveal any intervals that were avoided I'll take a year off sometime and investigate!

Is a year enough? I heard he wrote 96, the last lot in microtones to get round this problem but Count Esterdroopich had them burned. The first two books were already publ by then.

QUOTE (maggiemay @ Jan 17 2005, 04:21 PM)

I too love the choral works, motets and cantatas, not to mention organ works, solo concerti, Brandenburgs etc etc. Does anyone know who said "for Bach, the fugue was the natural form of expression"   ?

It was either Darth Vader, Rick Moranis or Kim Basinger, not sure which.

QUOTE (maggiemay @ Jan 17 2005, 04:21 PM)

an amazing thought to those of us who struggle to write fugues as an academic excercise.

And we, well, I...don't even struggle to have 20 children let along chat up Mr SIlbermann's daughters while getting coffee all over his cantata scores. He needed plenty of coffee, did Bach. Let alone write all those fugues...and everything else. I mean...what adrenalin...

cheers people, i was gonna say, i only posted this the other day, ive done the same thing though and read the joining date....easy mistake to make. i keep doing that its annoyin. im kinda knew this forum stuff so how is everyone?

i love bach, spesh his minets, fab!!

QUOTE (practice makes perfect @ Jan 17 2005, 06:35 PM)

im kinda knew this forum stuff so how is everyone?

Kinda new? I only joined yesterday lol So how's Bach going then? Managed to play his Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue yet lol? Made any progress in the book yet? Decided what pieces you're going to play first?

(Have to catch up with everyone else in messages, although I've got to send about 3800 or so posts to catch up! Oh well, one down I suppose... )

QUOTE (kenm @ Jan 17 2005, 04:09 PM)

I'm not convinced his all-keys temperament was equal.  It would be interesting to find out whether the 48 reveal any intervals that were avoided and see whether they would have been wolf tunings in any of the plausible "well-temperaments" that were around at the time.

You've guessed right: Bach's temperament wasn't equal. There's a guide to it here. Having said that, Bach might still have avoided certain intervals in case they clashed in certain other popular temperaments of the day; if not, he'd have to tune any instrument on which he was called to do a recital to his temperament.

well hey wobby, howz u finding the forum? na havent got that far yet, just looked. have had to concentrate more on theory, im kinda rushing through a few of the grades to get where i need to be to do alevel? oh well, everyone here seems so experienced, i was beginning to feel left out!!!!

Hehe, sorry, you'll have to be left out now lol

I'm an advanced member now!

Woohoo! Only 11 posts for you to go to becoming an advanced member! What grade are you on at the moment? Although you need a fairly high standard
for A Level Music, for GCSE, you only need about Grade 4 I think to get highest marks (some people can't even play an instrument at all in our group, or sing), so I doubt A Level will already be that everyone has to be Grade 8 - otherwise the world would be full of expert musicians! Yeah, I think the forum's great at the moment, quite fun! How are you finding it?

you need to be grade 6 standard for a level - obviously it's a bonus if you are higher, but grade 6 is the requirement. (as in standard, not necessarily having the exam done!)

its a good job you dont have to be grade 8 at alevel

Could one ever stop loving Bach's music - I very much doubt it.

Amber:... I can't imagine it to be possible!

wobby, thats so unfair, im gonna have to start posting more u show off. yeah, i likes the forum, good fun and useful sometimes, hope to make a few more friends on it soon...hopefully!!!!!! well ive talked to my teacher, i need to be grade 5 by the end of the year and bout the same in theory and they will take me on for alevel, cuz i have two years to improve!!! so u doing gcse or alevel then? are they any good cuz i didnt take gcse. mail bk

apparently it improves sight reading though I'm not too keen on baroque myself

You've still got 9 more posts to go Currently I'm doing GCSE Music (Same group as Fluteandbassoon) and it's quite fun! We sort of just sit around and play music, most of the time spent on compositions - not got on to performances yet. I just go there to play really, because I tend to just do the compositions at home - basically, I go there to play piano for my group for whoever has piano in their composition. It's quite relaxed, but can get a bit tedious when you have two hours of it solid in a small practise room with 4 other people. I think it's about 81% to get an A, though I'm not sure. Hoping for an A* though ... However, I'm trying to make really hard compositions... only problem is, they're so hard I can't play them!

I'm Grade 5 at the moment, going on to Grade 6, but the problem is no theory!!! Just can't find a teacher for both piano practical and theory - the town's too small . I skipped two Grades, took Grade 3 (which I got a distinction for! ) and then I'm planning to take Grade 5 when I've got a theory teacher. Been playing for about 3½ years.

How about u? How's A Level Music? Fun? Or stunningly boring? Or stressing?

Oh well, post is getting a bit long, so I'll wait 'til your reply

QUOTE (Wobby @ Jan 19 2005, 07:07 PM)

You've still got 9 more posts to go Currently I'm doing GCSE Music (Same group as Fluteandbassoon) and it's quite fun! We sort of just sit around and play music, most of the time spent on compositions - not got on to performances yet. I just go there to play really, because I tend to just do the compositions at home - basically, I go there to play piano for my group for whoever has piano in their composition. It's quite relaxed, but can get a bit tedious when you have two hours of it solid in a small practise room with 4 other people.

Good Job we don't have to play No woman No cry anymore afetr teh recording today.

Wait until I have finnished Vicar of Dibley.....

Anyway, Back to Bach. I am not sure whta I think of his music. I have hardly heard any of the recordings of his scores.

Is this "Wait until I've finished Vicar of Dibley!" in means of saying, "Wait until I've finished Vicar of Dibley, it will be worse!"?

Yeh, it sound quite rubbish, the syncopated (ooo BIG word) chords don't sound right coz tehy are not right and my piano playing is so bad, I cant muck around wwith trying to get them to fit and I ahev fallen out with Sibuleus!

Okay, next music lesson we can try out the pieces of music you bring in - see how it sounds

i no, i no, nine more posts to go, im gonna get that advanced member by the end of the week!!!!!!!!!!!!!! well im not actually doing alevel, i just havent decided whether to take it or not. gotta week to decide though. its between music and chemistry at the moment. ive got the same problem too with theory. im doing grade 5 piano, but have no theory, so me teacher has no decided to give me a crash course to grade 3, with like a practice paper for each grade each wee. it madness!!!!!!!!!!!!! so, u in yr 10 or 11 then? im in year 11, nearly finished now. thank god for that! wat piece are u playing for your ensemble or dont you no yet?