The Well-Tempered Clavier – Part 1

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Walkthrough - Prelude and Fugue No. 2 in C Minor (2)

Prelude: Bars 7 - 9

5. Grouping the semiquavers (16th notes) 1234 1234 emphasises the main beats in the most obvious and square way: Grouping them differently allows interesting patterns to emerge. It is more the way we feel or think the groupings than doing anything too obvious that would disrupt to the smooth flow. I have indicated one or two possibilities over the next few bars. These are suggestions only, so feel free to experiment with groupings such as 2341; 3412; and 4123. Listening to the interplay between one hand and the other also adds colour and interest – again, do this extremely subtly or it will have the opposite effect. You don’t have to practise any of this in too much, as you may find the way you listen changes. This is a good thing!

Prelude: Bars 13 - 15

6. The LH fingering from bar 12 into bar 13 requires a contraction in the hand over the bar line. Of course experiment with different fingering; mine is just a suggestion.
7. The A on the last semiquaver of the first beat (LH) is immediately needed by the RH and thus needs to be played staccato. A good solution for this bar is to hold onto the RH Fs (first and third beats) a little longer, and play all other notes leggiero. Enjoy the change of texture this brings.

Resources and further reading For complete score, see Practising the Piano Annotated Study Edition (click here) Article on using the Practice Stepladder for learning contrapuntal music featuring this work (click here)