Bach did not specify the instrumentation, ordering, tempo, dynamics, or interpretative instructions for The Art of Fugue, leaving much to performers.
Compositional Technique
J. S. Bach's The Art of Fugue explores a vast range of contrapuntal techniques, including inversion, augmentation, diminution, and multiple fugue subjects.
Composition History
The Art of Fugue is notable for its unfinished state and the inclusion of Bach's name as a theme in Contrapunctus XIV, adding to its mystery.
Recording & Production
This recording of The Art of Fugue was made at Oktaven Audio in Mt. Vernon, NY, across three dates in late 2016.
Compositional Technique
The entirety of The Art of Fugue remains in the key of D minor, creating a unified feeling of seriousness, melancholy, and gravity.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Bach viewed fugues as a source of boundless creativity, using them to explore the many contrapuntal possibilities of a single theme.
Interpretation
The performers, Duo Stephanie & Saar, present selections from The Art of Fugue as four-hand pieces, on two pianos, and as solo works.
