Why Bach Wrote a One Measure Movement

Описание: Download the Phrygian Half Cadence worksheets (Chord by Chord Episode 11): http://drfrommsmusiclab.gumroad.com/l...

Watch the full Phrygian Half Cadence episode:    • The Phrygian Half Cadence: iv⁶ → V | Chord...  

The second movement of Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 is famously short, just one measure long. Two half notes. A fermata. And that’s it.

This video takes a closer look at why Bach would write a movement like this, and why it works so well. Far from being a joke or an unfinished thought, these two chords form a complete and expressive musical gesture: a Phrygian half cadence.

Along the way, we look at:
• How Baroque improvisation and figured bass shape this moment
• Why half cadences create expectation rather than closure
• The essential voice-leading components of a Phrygian half cadence (6–5, 4–5, 1–7)
• How Bach thickens the texture with violas while maintaining complete line independence
• Why voice crossing and tritone leaps aren’t “rule breaking” here, and why parallel fifths and octaves still don’t appear

If you want to practice writing Phrygian half cadences yourself, check out the worksheets linked above. They’re tricky at first, but once the voice leading clicks, they practically write themselves.

00:00 The entire second movement
00:19 Why this meme exists
00:48 Improvisation and Baroque context
01:48 What makes these two chords work
02:35 Phrygian half cadence voice leading
02:57 Orchestration, violas, and “breaking the rules”
04:48 Further your understanding