Bach essays

Bach essays Bachs Concerto for Harpsichord exhibits many features that are common in the first movements of Classical concerto forms. The movement begins with an orchestral exposition, all in tonic, in which a soft opening theme leads to a transitional tutti in measure 12. A light cadential theme is then heard from the orchestra, followed by a closing tutti in measure 24-43. The soloist then restates this in embellished form, being joined occasionally by the orchestra in measures 44-58, embroidering the transitional tutti with runs and turns as seen in measures 59-71, and then introducing a secondary theme on the dominant in measure 71. The light cadential theme of the orchestral exposition (measure 25) fuels an imaginatively elaborated closing section, in measures 85-105, to which the earlier closing tutti adds a final mark of punctuation in measure 106-114. Here, instead of developing these ideas as in a normal classical concerto, Bach plays on different tonal levels with a new idea intr oduced by the keyboard. In measure 146, the recapitulation is dominated by the solo instrument, omitting the keyboards second theme, and going directly from the now familiar transitional tutti to the graceful closing theme in measure 171. This is done nicely to extend to reach the six-four chord that announces the cadenza seen in measure 191, after which the closing tutti energetically ends the movement. This was a blend of the ritornello-solo structure of the Baroque concerto and the formal exposition, elaboration or excursion, and recapitulation of the symphonic allegro. The tutti now has discrete functions within a deliberate scheme of thematic and tonal contrast, and the solos, though still free and fanciful, are anchored in the principal thematic substance. (NAWM pg. 92) ...