Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, BWV 542

Описание: 00:00 Fantasia
05:38 Fugue

In 1720, J.S. Bach left his wife and children on a trip to southern Germany with his employer, Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Köthen. Two months later, Bach returned, only to discover that his wife Maria was in the grave. She had died unexpectedly during Bach's trip, even though she had been in perfect health when he left. As the story goes, Bach, overwhelmed with grief and anguish, went to his room and put his agony into music. The Fantasia in G Minor was Bach's expression of his grief. Although we're not sure if this story is true, I think that there is probable cause to believe it. In the Fantasia, Bach uses a level of dissonance incomparable with his other organ works. You can hear the grief and anguish Bach experienced in the dissonant opening chords of the Fantasia. In the quiet lyrical sections, Bach seems to express the solace he found in God, and his comfort that his wife was with the Lord Jesus in Heaven and that he would one day see her again.

The fugue, based on the Dutch folk song "Ik ben gegroet van," may have been inspired from a Bach improvisation in 1720 at the St. James Church in Hamburg. The fugue is often referred to as the "Great Fugue" to distinguish it from the "Little Fugue" in G Minor, BWV 578. In my opinion, the "Great Fugue" is Bach's finest fugue of all time.

This piece was recorded on 30 December 2025 on the Werner Bosch pipe organ at Lutheran Church of Our Savior in Cupertino, California. I used the following registration:

Hauptwerk Brustwerk Pedal

8' Principal 8' Metallgedackt 16' Bourdon
8' Rohrflöte 4' Rohrpommer 8' Principal
4' Oktav 8' Trumpet
2 2/3 Nasat I/Pedal
2' Flachflöte
IV Mixtur

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-Walter

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