Prelude and Fugue

in F minor, BWV 881

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The Prelude and Fugue in F minor,

BWV 881, is a keyboard composition
written by Johann Sebastian Bach. It is the
twelfth prelude and fugue in the second
book of The Well-Tempered Clavier, a
series of 48 preludes and fugues by the
composer.
Analysis
Prelude

The prelude is 70 bars long, and is written

in theme and variations form. The theme
is 28 bars long and written in binary form.
It is followed by several variations in
different keys, and ends with a variation in
the home key. Below is the opening
sentence of the prelude:
The opening sentence of the prelude.
Listen (help·info)

The first four measures of this sentence

has two voices leading the melody in
thirds, and another voice leading the bass
line. After four measures, only two voices
continue. One voice plays the root of a
chord, while the second voice plays a
broken chord around it. This continues like
so for another four measures, and ends
with an imperfect cadence. After this, the
sentence is repeated, except modulating
to E♭ major at one point and ending on a
perfect cadence. Together, these two
sentences create a compound period, and
the first part of a small binary.

Following the compound period, the

second part of the small binary starts. It
consists of one voice playing broken
chords and two other voices leading a
melody, and is eight measures long. A
perfect cadence in A♭ major concludes the
small binary, and thus ending the theme of
the prelude.

The prelude ends with a two-measure

codetta, which consists of a perfect
cadence in the home key.
Fugue

The fugue is 85 bars long, and is written

for 3 voices. Below is the 4-measure
subject of the fugue:

The first four bars of the fugue. Listen (help·info)

Just like most fugues in the baroque

period, the subject is then repeated in the
middle voice in the dominant key (C
minor), and then repeated once more in
the lowest voice, again in the home key.
This final repetition of the subject is
followed a small episode that consists of
a descending fifths sequence. This is
followed by the development of the fugue,
which has many additional repetitions of
the subject in various voices and keys, and
occasionally episodes with the same
descending fifths sequence as before in
between. After the final repetition of the
subject in the tonic key, the descending
fifths episode is repeated as a codetta,
which concludes the fugue.

See also
 List of compositions by Johann
Sebastian Bach

References

Sources
Bach, Johann Sebastian. "Prelude and
Fugue No. 12 in F Minor." The Well
Tempered Clavier, Books 1 and 2. Ed.
Saul Novak.

Interactive media
BWV 881 Fugue (Flash) - David
Korevaar performing
BWV 846-869 Prelude and Fugue
(Flash) at the BinAural Collaborative
 Hypertext David Korevaar, Philip Goeth,
and Edward Parmentier performing

External links
Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II: Scores at
the International Music Score Library
Project (IMSLP)
Prelude and Fugue No. 12 in F Minor
Sheet Music (PDF)
http://ekav.info/blog/bach-prelude-
fugue-f-minor-bwv881/

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