"Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor" - Johann Sebastian Bach

This week on WRTI Philadelphia Classical Radio, I listened to Johann Sebastian Bach’s (1685-1750) Passacaglia and Fugue in C Minor BWV 582. This piece was conducted by Robert Pikler, and performed by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Bach is widely known for his musical accomplishments in the Baroque Era, during which he composed much for the harpsichord, organ as well as orchestral pieces.

A passacaglia consists of a bass line that is repeated in variations along with a series of chords. This is similar to a basso ostinato, or a bass line that is consistently repeated, but a passacaglia is not repeated consistently because of the variations that occur in the music. At certain points in the music, the bass line may not be heard at all, but the chord progressions will continue to play and carry along the original theme. Bach’s Passacaglia begins with a bass line in the pedals of the organ that repeats the pattern of quarter note, half note until the eighth repetition when the bass ends on the tonic in a very low pitch. The organist repeats the bass sequence again, this time adding chords on top for texture. In the next sequence, the chords are played somewhat differently. The music reaches a point where the bass line cannot be made out clearly because of all of the variations and the eventual introduction of the fugue. However, the bass notes can sometimes be heard coming back in with the same notes used in the beginning.

This piece also has fugal elements, meaning that it exhibits a polyphonic texture. The fugue is built on the theme, or the subject of the bass line. Interestingly, the organ is one of the only instruments that can create a polyphonic texture by itself, because it can use the different registers of notes and the bass pedals to create a full and rich texture that can easily stand alone.

It is as if the Passacaglia is transformed into a completely different piece of music towards the end. The music actually ends on a C Major chord, rather than the C Minor chord that began the piece. Bach was truly a musical genius that was able to compose music with such beautiful and rich texture.