21.9. Angela Hewitt and the Fugue

About the programme

The fugue has the ability to lift the listener out of everyday reality. Writing a fugue is a creative and intellectual challenge that requires solid compositional skills. At the same time, it is also a challenge for the performer. Playing a fugue requires great technical skill, careful listening, a good memory, and mastery of the whole.

The fugue is a polyphonic form of composition consisting of several independent voices. The theme of the fugue is presented at the beginning of the work in a single voice. After this, another voice repeats the theme at a different pitch, and the original voice forms a counterpoint to it. The other voices join in one by one in the same way, creating the impression of a lively conversation. The theme can appear in various forms throughout the piece, and the composer uses their creativity to consider how the conversation will progress. Fugues can be, for example, three-part or even five-part, and sometimes they can have two themes, in which case they are called double fugues.

J. S. Bach – the unsurpassed master of the fugue

One of the phenomenal masters of the fugue was Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), who wrote skillful fugues for organ and keyboard instruments, especially the harpsichord. The Well-Tempered Clavier is a collection of Bach's compositions in two volumes, each containing one prelude and one fugue in all 24 keys. There were several systems for tuning the harpsichord, which aimed to achieve the best possible sound in certain keys. Bach's "well-tempered clavier" is a step towards a system in which all keys are possible with the same tuning, while still preserving the special characteristics of each key. Bach intended the preludes and fugues partly as study material, as is evident from the preface: "for use and practice by young musicians who are eager to learn, as well as for the special enjoyment of those who are more experienced."

The first book was completed in 1722. It is an astonishingly comprehensive collection of compositional techniques for the harpsichord of that time. It includes, among other things, two-part inventions, three-part sinfonias, singing arias, toccatas, and various fugue techniques. The devotional prelude in C major that opens the book, with its ascending melody, is one of Bach's best-known compositions. The Prelude and Fugue in C minor is also popular thanks to its robust, motoric prelude and fateful fugue. The Prelude in D major is cheerfully lively and virtuosic with its right-hand runs. The D minor creates a hypnotic, breathless atmosphere, while the C sharp major prelude is a lively, cheerful two-part invention. The C sharp minor creates a sad atmosphere with its singing melody.

Felix Mendelssohn in Bach's footsteps

Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847) came from a wealthy and cultured family, where music-making was a self-evident of life. Although J.S. Bach's music had fallen into obscurity after the master's death, it was still heard in Mendelssohn's home. Felix's close relatives included harpsichordist Sara Itzig Levy, who was the favourite student of Bach's eldest son, Wilhelm Friedemann Bach, and a famous interpreter of Bach's music. Felix's mother, a skilled pianist, had acquired the sheet music for Bach's preludes and fugues for the Mendelssohn home. Mendelssohn's teacher Carl Zelter had also got hold of Bach's works and was particularly enthusiastic about the St. Matthew Passion. This enthusiasm rubbed off on Felix, who took it upon himself to restore Bach's music to its former glory. Under Mendelssohn's direction, the St. Matthew Passion was performed in Berlin in 1829.

Mendelssohn had been greatly influenced by Bach's music throughout his life. It is therefore no surprise that he too turned to oratorios, cantatas, and fugues in his compositions. The Prelude and Fugue in E minor is included in the collection of six works, Op. 35, which was published in 1837. The first prelude in E minor resembles Bach's texture in its fast arpeggio patterns, but in the spirit of Romanticism, Mendelssohn has created a singing melody within the pattern. The fugue is a four-part, calm and dignified composition rich in chromaticism. Towards the end, the intensity increases and the music accelerates as the technical challenges increase. The long octave sequence culminates in a dignified chorale, after which the music calms down.

Dmitri Shostakovich continues the tradition

In 1950, 200 years had passed since Bach's death, and an international Bach competition was held in Leipzig to commemorate the occasion. Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975) from Moscow was invited to be a member of the competition jury. Particular attention was drawn to 26-year-old Tatiana Nikolayeva, who had prepared to perform any of the 48 preludes and fugues in the competition. Shostakovich was so impressed by Nikolayeva's playing that he immediately began composing his own series of 24 preludes and fugues and presented the compositions to Tatiana as they were completed. The collection was completed in 1951, and Shostakovich dedicated it to Nikolayeva, who premiered the work in Leningrad in 1952.

The works in this series are easily comparable to their paragon, Bach, as they even refer to him several times. However, the music is Shostakovich's own compositional language, which is tonal but full of surprising twists and tragic tones. Prelude No. 18 in F minor begins with a long melody that sings its melancholic song. The three-part fugue continues the beautiful, wistful song, but the wandering between different keys electrifies the atmosphere. The wavering between minor and major finally resolves in a major victory.

Samuel Barber and the “American fugue”

Next, the fugue takes us to the United States, where one of the most significant fugues for piano of the 20th century was written by Samuel Barber (1910–1981). This fugue is the last movement of Barber’s great Piano Sonata, Op. 26, which is considered a cornerstone of American piano literature. The four-movement sonata dates from 1949 and was commissioned to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Composers’ Society. Pianist Vladimir Horowitz, who premiered the sonata, felt that the originally three-movement sonata needed something “sparkling” for its finale. Barber wrote a fourth movement, a grand virtuoso fugue that was considered almost impossible to play. Barber's fugue is four-part and has the structure of a traditional fugue, but jazz influences (syncopated rhythms and blue notes) make it distinctly American. Other references to American music can be found, especially in the middle section of the fugue, after which the fugue accelerates towards its climax with its wild octave runs.

J. S. Bach: Partita No. 6 in E minor, BWV 830

As part of his Clavier-Übung collection, Bach wrote several dance suites for the harpsichord. Elegant court dances were popular in France, and harpsichordists played suites of dances called Suites. The most common dances were the sarabande, allemande, courante, and gigue. French influences spread to other European countries. In Italy, the suites took on their own characteristics and were called Partitas. In Germany, Bach, who was well acquainted with international influences, wrote French suites, English suites, and partitas, combining different styles into his own musical language.

Partita No. 6 in E minor is remarkably solemn and serious. In it, Bach often chose complex musical structures instead of the lightness of dance. The seven-part suite begins with a broad toccata proclaiming robust counterpoint and ends with a gigue, which is a fugue. The other dance sections also feature serious, soulful music created through counterpoint, with even tragic tones. The wonder of the fugue is ever-present.

Text by Sonja Fräki
Translations by the festival team