Sonata in A minor
BWV 967 performed by Emmanuel Frankenberg
at Broedergemeente, Zeist
Behind the music
Story
Story
Credits
Credits
Italian style exercise
A very early work by Bach that forms a prelude to the Well-Tempered Clavier
Not much is known about this work. It is not dated and neither is it part of a larger collection. Based on musical arguments, however, we can fortunately say something about it. It must be an early work; probably still from Bach’s time in Arnstadt - from 1703 to 1705. Bach was just twenty or so at the time, and his style was still developing. Eager to learn, he pounced on all the music he could find, whether it came from Northern Germany, Southern Germany, France or Italy. Many of Bach’s works from this period are style exercises.
This sonata is a style exercise in the Italian sonata form. Around 1700, Italian music was booming. All over Europe, musicians were enthralled by the daring harmonies, the flowing melody lines and the strong contrasts that Italy had to offer. So in this sonata, we find a couple of things that are very unusual for Bach. For instance, he goes easy on the rules of counterpoint – which Bach normally held sacred. The significance of this sort of work should not be underestimated. Much of what is heard here returns in the preludes of the Well-Tempered Clavier, for example.
- BWV
- 967
- Title
- Sonata in A minor
- Instrument
- harpsichord
- Genre
- harpsichord works
- Year
- circa 1705-1706
- City
- Arnstadt
Extra videos
Vocal texts
Original
Translation
Credits
-
- Release date
- 1 February 2024
-
- Recording date
- 7 December 2021
-
- Location
- Broedergemeente, Zeist
-
- Harpsichord
- Emmanuel Frankenberg
-
- Instrument
- Nico van der Waals, 1977 after J.D. Dulcken
-
- Director and camera
- Bas Wielenga
-
- Music recording
- Guido Tichelman
-
- Music recording, edit and mix
- Pim van der Lee
-
- Camera
- Onno van Ameijde
-
- Lights
- Ernst-Jan Thieme
-
- Lighting assistant
- Patrick Galvin
-
- Assistant music recording
- Marloes Biermans
-
- Producer
- Stefan Ebels, Marco Meijdam
Discover
Help us to complete All of Bach
There are still many recordings to be made before the whole of Bach’s oeuvre is online. And we can’t complete the task without the financial support of our patrons. Please help us to complete the musical heritage of Bach, by supporting us with a donation!