Johann Sebastian Bach - booksnow.scholarsportal.info

2l8 JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH.Still he wished to increase the scope of the collection.Not content with producing organ chorales in the mostwidely different forms, he went back to their original germand found room even for real chorale preludes, a form thathe had never had anything to do with, except, perhaps, inhis earliest youth. **^° The organ chorale differs from thechorale prelude in this, that it is an independent work ofart, requiring only a previous acquaintance with the melody,while the chorale prelude is nothing more than a preparatorypiece, having its central point of interest not in itself, butin the congregational hymn that is to follow it. Accordingly,the treatment of the melody is quite different ; the hymntuneis only referred to, and must never appear entire inthe organ piece. Now the feecond arrangement of " KyrieGott Vater in Ewigkeit " in this collection is pre-eminentlyof this kind ; only the first three notes of the chorale aretreated in all three parts. In the second arrangement ofthe baptismal hymn the whole of the first lineof the tune isintroduced, but no more. But in order to appreciate thealmost immeasurable difference between the old choraleprelude and that of Bach, compare the works of this kindcomposed by Johann Christoph Bach with those justmentioned. *°^An independent species of chorale prelude is the choralefugue. And this formi, too, had been scarcely touched byBach during his riper years until now.^'^ The third partof the "Ciavierübung" contains five such pieces; they areupon the melodies "Allein Gott in der Höh," "Dies sinddie heiigen zehn Gebot," " Wir glauben all," and " JesusChristus unser Heiland." With the exception of the firstthe fugue theme in each is derived from the first line only.Three of them are fughettas, thrown off with masterly ease,and full of sharply defined character ; the smaller work on" Wir glauben all " is in the French style, and the first andmost important one is in Buxtehude's manner. The fugueon "Jesus Christus unser Heiland," with which the collec-^05 See Vol. I., p. 2ig. «^ See Vol. I., p. loo ff.*'Compare Vol. I., p. 605 f.