
Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp minor,
BWV
The (, ; BWV) is a Catalogues of classical compositions, catalogue of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. It was first published in 1950, edited by Wolfgang Schmieder. The catalogue's second edition appeared in 1990 and the third edition in ...
873, is a keyboard composition written by
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...
in 1738.
It is the 4th
prelude and fugue
{{Unreferenced, date=June 2019, bot=noref (GreenC bot)
A prelude and fugue is a musical form generally consisting of two Movement (music), movements in the same key for solo keyboard music, keyboard. In classical music, the combination of Prelude ( ...
in Book II of ''
The Well-Tempered Clavier
''The Well-Tempered Clavier'', BWV 846–893, consists of two sets of preludes and fugues in all 24 major and minor keys for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach. In the composer's time ''clavier'' referred to a variety of keyboard instruments, ...
''.
Prelude
The prelude is in the
time signature
A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates th ...
of 9/8 time. It is in the
key of
C-sharp minor
C-sharp minor is a minor scale based on C, with the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature consists of four sharps.
The C-sharp natural minor scale is:
Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale ar ...
. The Prelude is heavily
ornamented with
mordent
In music, a mordent is an ornament indicating that the note is to be played with ''a single'' rapid alternation with the note above or below. Like trills, they can be chromatically modified by a small flat, sharp or natural accidental. The ...
s and
appoggiatura
An appoggiatura ( , ; or ; ) is a musical ornament that consists of an added non-chord note in a melody that is resolved to the regular note of the chord. By putting the non-chord tone on a strong beat, (typically the first or third beats of ...
s.
Fugue
The fugue is in 12/16 time. It is also in C-sharp minor. Unlike its prelude, the fugue does not have much ornamentation.
References
{{Authority control
The Well-Tempered Clavier
Compositions in C-sharp minor
1738 compositions