Bach - Prelude & Fugue No.2 in C minor

[gbainger]

Yea this is, tuned up I believe...

[lilangelgrl22]

my hs band played this, beautiful piece

[ladanseuse14]

who played this?

[tzizcake]

I LOVE it!!! Can't stop listening to it!!!!

[JakubLadecky]

I must learn that on Absolvent exam ;(



[InfamousHDB]

Has this been sped up? Its in C#.

[superhooyooman]

Like a boss!!

[mitoyoful]

браво великому композитору и спасибо пианисту!!!

[DrTWG]

Excellence cannot be rushed! My personal opinion is that this is played way too fast - I don't have time to enjoy the harmonies - it sounds like the pianist can't wait to finish.

[greenlego42]

@DrTWG i agree

[handdancin]

off the Richter scale, yo

[FrikShowOhNo]

if you guy don't play proffetionally it can be hard to understand, but sometimes playing it very technically is very interesting, listening to the notes themself speak, with no personal interpretation..well i think so :)

[Wemyss333]

its so metal!!!

[thenamesfrancisco]

@Wemyss333 no, metal is so bach.

[TekranoXx]

personally. like the BWV999 prelude 6 i find this piece easier to play at high speeds, its as if the music flows from my brain and hands rather than me thinking about it.

[danishpride1]

Bach gives wings...

[dmares92]

i think this is beautiful. Richter is one of the best pianists in the world

[malkavianxx]

I am in the crowd that thinks the prelude is waaay too fast. I mean it is cool and I am impressed by his skill, up until the presto section, which sounds ridiculously out of nowhere and doesn't flow with the rest of the prelude. I liked the fugue much better. In general I'd give this interpretation an A but not an A+ because of the presto thing.

[kailaikai]

Only the Prelude!!!

[AndrewTheShort]

@kailaikai The fugue starts at 1:19

[Hughmanator]

Who are you YouTubers in saying that Sviatoslav Richter, a renowned classical pianist, plays at a tempo "too fast"? I am sure with all the experience he has and all the practice he has had that he knows knows very well what he is doing.

[bddbjrsexy]

@Hughmanator Just because he's an awesome pianist doesn't mean he is without fault. I personally think it is too fast. But that's why everyone's allowed to have their own opinion.

[mikis365]

the perelud too fast and tichnical,and the fuge is no soul i wonder if buch would like it..

[musikalie]

@mikis365 it's spelled Bach...

[toushibaby]

@mikis365 wow u cant spell anything haha

[ChiefKabehkar]

@mikis365 hmm, yes, too many notes.

[Razzlyify]

@mikis365 The ideal tempo for this piece is 104-116 bpm per quarter note.

[milenecthefirst]

@Razzlyify Why would you say 104-116 bpm? Purely out of intuition, or is there a scientific backing?

[Razzlyify]

@milenecthefirst It's written in the score. The ideal tempo is 104-116 but it's always up to the pianist to play it at the tempo they feel is best for their interpretation.

[chiouian25]

the pianist is??????????

[Jio1557]

I even prefer the Bloody Beetroots' version... Gould's one overstates... This.

[Miss80Banana]

Fucking too fast and to mechanichal: i can't hear music but noises. I prefer so much Glenn Gould's interpretation!

[seesaw75]

@Miss80Banana

yes TOO TOO fast!! u're alright

it's crap, inaudible!!!!!

no inesrest at all

[xavisegu]

The bloody beetroots - Have mercy on us is based on this

[JosephStalin11]

I love this song. Very good piano playing.

[Johannes999999999]

I actually enjoy this performance. It really allows one to firmly grasp the progession of harmonies and tonalities throughout the prelude. An with Bach, everything he does is interesting.

[trinaVIPiano]

@Johannes999999999 YES! Totally agree

[lyzedekiel]

I find his fugue a little bit too mechanical... cannot hear any legato ! but his prelude is very well played.

[PublicLibraryx]

@lyzedekiel The fugue has a lot of staccato though o.O

[the2pianists]

I play this now

[BBalarinMusic]

who played this recording??

[johanJL]

@BBalarinMusic

I believe this is Karl Richter playing.

[ifailatediting]

punkheads, this is the real tempo

[BlackFlover911]

this is the best thing I've played

[deathstrikeRasputin]

This has to be my favourite of Bach's Preludes. Another great interpretation of this piece is by the Jacques Loussier Trio - brilliant to listen to even if you're not a huge jazz fan.

[cwk1017]

well, different people will have different taste of music.. =) i personally like this tempo, and it is so much difficult to play at this speed..

[spartan10010]

it's ALLEGRO VIVACE and sixteenth notes of course it's going to be fast. If you can't play it fast, practice something easier until you get better. If you play this slow it is really boring..

[KirakosyanArmine]

velikolepno !!!!!

[gloga3111]

emperormiki noooo shit its not chopin its bach

[Losieusatra]

@gloga3111 what he meant is that this isnt good enough to be in Chopin grade;p i dont agree with him tho.. its baroque, not romantism.

[PrinceRufus2]

PICARDY THIRD!!!

[EMPERORMIKI]

too legato eewwwww ... no soul, too heavy in the middle register. The tempo fluctuates too much as well ... hate to say it but this isn't Chopin.

[Losieusatra]

@EMPERORMIKI duude Bach wasnt in romantism age;p of course you cant put too much soul into his works, becouse he wasnt doing that due to the music age he was living in - and that was age of sadness and redemption. Do we need to teach you history? :/

[EMPERORMIKI]

@Losieusatra not if you describe baroque music as belonging to "the age of sadness and redemption".

[Losieusatra]

@EMPERORMIKI thats.. why barouque sounds like it sound... sadness and redemption is good way to put it - and there can be other ways - in baroque you need to be careful not to make it "candy", becouse for that in those ages you would be just.. claimed to be against christians and putted on fire.. with all your works.. or I you ddnt get it..

[momster777]

pretty straightforward piece but i must say its damned near impossible to play at that speed...

[PrezOfERM]

richter does an excellent job on the fugue, in my opinion.

[fartstack01]

The aim and final end of all music should be none other than the glory of God and the refreshment of the soul

[fartstack01]

awsome



[michaelcoreuk]

this is sick.

ohhhh I love Chopin and Back piano pieces!!!!!!!

[guitarfan1979]

is that really Bach playing? wow...

[chrisclr]

I love this version, who's the pianist?

[hellboyreloaded]

@chrisclr Richter.

[fanghushengjing]

excellent!!!

[BoyBlueberry]

Who's the pianist? :)

[Mpdjd]

I absolutely adore this piece! I'm planning on playing the prelude in an upcoming recital...wish I could sound as good as this! I'm so glad Bach existed.....otherwise we wouldn't have compositions like this!! :)

[SpyVi]

to my mind this is not how bach would have thought of the piece. The harpishchord is not capable of the dynamics the piano is, so the "important" notes must be brought in the front with other means. Thus, the most "pure" or "loyal" interpretations are holding the first note of each group of 16ths, to make the melody aparrent, so this is speed makes it another piece. it was however played with great skill, and didnt sound bad at all.

[Torpensann]

Excellent tempo. It's an fantastic preformance that does NOT lack soul or feelings. People are just to comfortable with the graceful notes of the romantic era.

[mattrocks182]

Wowowowowoooow i thought the prelude was moderato, and how is it even humanly possible to play it that fast? Jesus

[bullet50000]

@mattrocks182

It isnt moderato. I have a copy of the sheet music and it says 130

[SpyVi]

@bullet50000 bach didnt write any marks on his scores. Vary rarely you will see a tempo marking, expressive markings(piano, forte etc). Most marks you will come across are additions of the various editor. I suggest looking at imslp.org, where you can find first editions of most pieces, and even manuscripts. you can also check your book, most editiors list the additions they put in the original text

[philateliceun]

@SpyVi But this is actually one of the piece where the tempo is mentioned. But who really cares.

[natia56]

perfect!!!!!!!!!!

[natia56]

love this piece!!!!!!!

[videosflopi]

seems to me perfect this speed.

anyone know where I can get off the same interpretation

[schumannkosuke]

Who does play this?Richter?

[NeverAloneForever]

Stevie definitely heard this.

[romainom]

BLOODY BEETROOTS <3

[c4bb4g3]

I think this tempo is perfect. great piece of music. I enjoyed this immensely

[daasvand]

I love to listen with all open mind. I do take in consideration the opinion of others. I like to play this prelude at a rather faster tempo. A friend of mine told me it was too fast so I played it much slower and it was good that way as well. I like this tempo very much!

[kelly321599]

the prelude is a little too fast but the fugue was great : )

[jphillq]

I don't really like the speed of the prelude, like most people said, I think it's better slow - but props on playing it that fast, I didn't know it was even possible. And the end - after the 16th notes played with both hands, when the tempo goes even faster - was absolutely sick. the tempo worked (for the last part of prelude). fugue was good. I'm currently learning it, and it's waayyyy harder than it sounds.

[kay486]

The tempo is as it should be retards.

[MrJpnkilla]

i like it how you can hear 3 or more rhythms going on in here. the melody (hight hand pinky and thumb) as well as others. amazing

[maddtappin]

this guy might wanna try smokin a joint then doing a recording again.

[1810Chopiano]

I like Richter's interpretation of the first part of the Prelude much better than Gould's, but from the adagio until the end Gould gets it PERFECTLY!

[kknots]

PLAYED BY SVYATOSLAV RICHTER

[4hm3dimr4n]

it still surprises how much this prelude is like the ocean etude

i think if it wasn't for chopin, I would've never had any from of attraction towards bach's music

[TheAccordionHero1]

I actually think that this speed is perfect! A prelude or toccata should be played like a virtuoso

[666Deathscythe]

man some people long ago are really genius... they create or invent something that haven't been, well, created or invented.. lol

[acknowledgment]

@r3v1xx The portraits we see of Bach are mainly his later years, but at 6'3" he supposedly cut a handsome figure as a young man in his 20s and 30s.

[Desmonddd2002]

Imagine this played on an organ or Harpsichord. lol

[r3v1xx]

Bach was ugly, but his music was beautiful. :)

[Andrew777801]

@r3v1xx You're definitely right. But you cant get a accurate picture of him without meeting him, right??

[jsnauwaert]

@r3v1xx

Hmm... you call that ugly? You can't guess, by mere looking at him, that he is that pinnacle genius that in reality he was, but he surely is not ugly. The painting itself is not the finest surely, a pitty that this God of the music wasn't painted by a more skilled painter'. You can guess, by mere seering him even on this mediocre picture, that he was a personality, probably really gifted. But it's impossible of course to guess the divine capab. of J.S. Bach behind this pic.

[Losieusatra]

@jsnauwaert dont sweat! Peoples like r3v1xx wont understand meaning of baroque music! .. !

[flooberonimus]

I agree with LimboShrip: while musicologists will argue the merits of different tempos prior to modern notation, it is up to each artist to interpret these pieces as they see fit. Current research also indicates that tempos for Bach are likely quicker than previously assumed. (Search for "Bach's Notation of Tempo.")

The question is, does the artist pull off the interpretation of the prelude? In this case, absolutely. It feels fluid, energetic, and appropriate.

[LimboShrimp]

For all those complaining about the speed of the prelude, we must remember that each player is allowed to interpret the piece as they wish, and that there is no concrete speed that music is supposed to be played. There are often suggestions, but it's still up to the player(s) to take it however fast they wish. I agree that it's a tad fast for my tastes, but we must remain open-minded.

[KABRIS1]

@LimboShrimp Bach's music sounds good at any speed. I wish other people recognized this fact.

[darknesspirate]

@LimboShrimp so what this person is saying is if you wish to be as epic as bach one write your own music and two play this shit even faster. lol

[MrJpnkilla]

@LimboShrimp

“The aim and final end of all music should be none other than the glory of God and the refreshment of the soul.”

- Johann Sebastian Bach

like you were saying, it depends on the player. as long as the piece agrees with the individual

[ixd735]

@LimboShrimp Especially with Richter... He wouldn't have recorded like this if he didn't think this was what Bach intended. Be believed in absolute fidelity to the composer. He says that a performer's job is to "carry ... out the composer's intentions to the letter."

[moneyjr1122]

@LimboShrimp the piece calls for allegro very hard piece :/ but yeah your 100% correct

[witchcraftlord]

@moneyjr1122 Bach didnt use tempos , when i look at my music, there are no tempo and few articulations, its up to the player to play the music the way he wants, theres no allegro here

[witchcraftlord]

@LimboShrimp its played to fast and it sounds horrible, no passion or soul, 

[MrPopoku]

Holy crap so fast?..

[heaven17]

Stevie Wonder drew ispiration from its beginning for his "Pastime paradise"...

[werewolfboy97]

This feels faster than normal and the Presto part seemed too mushed and not enough independent notes.  It might be perfect but the speed to me seems rushed

[KiptaviusFuzz]

@werewolfboy97 The muddy presto part sucked because it's being played on piano. Bach should be played on organ and harpsichord.

[werewolfboy97]

@KiptaviusFuzz it doesnt matter which instrument its played on, this recording is too fast for the real speed

[DirtyyRich]

Who's the pianist ?

[Zickestzam]

bloody beetroots!!!!!!!!!!!

[VioletRocketOfficial]

@Zickestzam Lol, you came here too just because "Have Mercy On Us" felt familiar to this? ;DDD

[irrevocable18]

prelude and fugue anything is Julliard audition music.

[EnderTheSkier]

To me the prelude is way too fast. It's sounds like he's running. There is no interpretation: it turn out to be just an exercise. It's not a racing competition... The fugue might be ok.

[tranjj]

not fast at all. This is a good tempo.

[philipchek]

I still can ear the notes : It's not enough quick.

[wcbroccoli]

@philipchek Some old people don''t  'ear well. And some people think every 16th note is supposed to stand out.

[philipchek]

@wcbroccoli

You are right I'm old. Well, me I'm not racialist against the young people. But it's a matter of old education I suppose. But as young as you may be, it seems you didn't catch well what I meant. Sorry my English is far from being perfect. I meant that if the aim of music is to play the fastest as possible, it fails here because we can still ear the notes. But I was just speaking about my feelings about Bach music - and I let the thruth to those who think they have it.

[wcbroccoli]

@philipchek When you wrote, "I still can ear the notes : It's not enough quick", I assumed you were being ironic, deliberately stating the opposite of what you meant, that you really meant the music is being played too fast. Even now you seem to be saying you think it's too fast.

Please do not be offended that I offer a little English lesson: We do not "ear" the notes. We HEAR the notes. We HEAR with the EAR. (Nous entendre avec l'oreille.)

[philipchek]

@wcbroccoli

Ok - no offense - that's probably why I do not heared so well :)

[acjromain]

too fast...

[willwei98]

@acjromain maybe for the prelude but the fugue was ok.

[acjromain]

@willwei98

Yes the prelude is too fast but the fugue is normal.

You should listen Glen Gould, he plays this piece very well. (Angela Hewitt's too)

[wcbroccoli]

@acjromain No, the prelude is not too fast. It's "normal."

[acjromain]

@wcbroccoli, That's what you think but for me it's too fast.

[disneyfairies]

I don't really prefer this tempo for the prelude. I like it somewhere between Glenn gould's version and this one because in the presto the notes become unrecognizable. I do like the tempo for the fugue though

[Darkboy2525]

Hmm Bach ,,, soooo diffrence than the others .. sooo much more in my opinion really he is my no 1 ... I just simlpy LOVE this man ... there are no need of words for his works, tears will say engouh when the music will be preformand in a good way !

The great master .... I just LOVE LOVE, LOVE him

[ANTiRussia1]

watch?v=6CDalsOgwjY Fugue

[jimphoenix127]

This piano is actually slightly sharp. I noticed it sounding a little off, and I played with it a little on my digital piano to tell. It has a function where you can actually detune it, which I did to match it up with this recording- this piano is at about 447; in tune being 440.

[HerrWozzeck]

@jimphoenix127 It depends, on how you look at it, to be perfectly honest. Europeans typically tune to a sharper A than we do here in America. As well, if we were going with Baroque performance as the period instrument movement has found, we'd actually have the piano tuned at 415, and it would likely be on harpsichord.

[wcbroccoli]

@HerrWozzeck If this were a "Baroque performance", by which you surely mean an historically informed performance, it would not be played on piano.

A415 pitch is a convention adopted by many period ensembles today, but pitch in the Baroque was not always A415. E.g., organs were tuned a whole step to a minor 3rd higher. In Bach's Weimar period the custom for church music was to tune the strings up to the organ, and winds, which could only tune to A415 or lower, had their parts transposed up.

[HerrWozzeck]

@wcbroccoli "and it would likely be on harpsichord"

I'm well aware of the fact that the piano wasn't really in popular use back then. IIRC, I think Bach actually tested the first of Cristofori's fortepianos saying that the reaction time was a bit slow...

[wcbroccoli]

@HerrWozzeck Cristofori's "fortepianos" 1st appeared around 1700 (when Bach was only 15) in Italy, not Germany. Around 1730 Silbermann in Germany began making pianos based on Cristoferi's design, and around 1736 Bach tried a Silbermann, praised its tone but complained the high register was too weak and the action (not "reaction time") too heavy. In his famous visit to the Prussian court in 1747, Bach improvised on the king's Silbermann pianos. In 1749 Bach brokered a Silbermann piano.

[DarknessHowls]

* 0:40 onwards, not 0:50 onwards, actually.

[DarknessHowls]

I thought the tempo chosen for the prelude wasn't tasteful--especially from 0:50 onwards. It just becomes a big blur at that speed.

[GGJampa]

@DarknessHowls The speed is as shown in the books... though the pianist here makes the prelude sounds rushed, it's just the piece. I have to agree it sounds nicer when it's a bit more slowed down, vivace, maybe? But classical musicians tend to stick with the papers. Keep in mind presto is almost as fast as it gets (prestissimo comes after), with around 168–200 bpm.

[DarknessHowls]

@GGJampa - It's entirely possible that I'm wrong, but I don't think the urtext has any notes regarding tempo in it. A lot of versions add articulation and tempo notes to help modern day players interpret the piece. So, if such is the case, the "right" tempo is kind of subjective. And even if Bach did mark it prestissimo, I still don't think this prelude sounds best at that speed. But then, that's my preference. Part of what makes Bach so great is the variation in interpretation. :-)

[godelike]

@DarknessHowls Actually in this very prelude an fugue Bach gives tempo indications: "Presto" for the second part at 0:50, "adagio" for the arpeggiated chords, then "allegro" when it comes back to the 16th notes motifs.

[4hm3dimr4n]

@DarknessHowls are you playing it with pedal? if you are then that's why it's a blur

[DarknessHowls]

@4hm3dimr4n - No, I would never play Bach with the pedal. I'm just saying, I feel like something is lost when the piece is played so quickly. It feels rushed to me.

[4hm3dimr4n]

@DarknessHowls well then you have to take it up with bach cause that's how he wanted that 2nd part lol

[DarknessHowls]

@4hm3dimr4n - Yeah. I guess I just don't like Bach's "vision" in this case.

[Archangelbrooklyn]

@DarknessHowls It's suppose to be. Any slower and it would reveal some stuff that he deffinetly did not want heard. There are several dissonances that were meant tp be hidden in the speed. Study the score and look at the chords each measure is based off of and you'll find some interesting things.

[EricTheRed03]

This sounds very different from Gould's version. I was so surprised. 

[ANTiRussia1]

watch?v=RatMkovMS9M

[ANTiRussia1]

@MrWolo98  not Johan Bach

[Wlhea]

Cramer, etude number 48. IT IS THE SAME! O___O

[iWillEatYu]

@Wlhea Cramer was "inspired" By Bach.

[thepissedkatamari]

I'll probably get flamed by purists for posting this, but who cares if it is out of tune, it sounds nice, different people have different perspectives to music, so it doesn't matter if it's out of tune, I still find it kind of melodic as long as the main gist of the minor melody is there.

[radioaudiovideo]

@thepissedkatamari I'm not going to flame you , but the more you train your ears , the more obvious and unpleasent out of tune instruments become. That being said , i don't think this piano is out of tune.

[VinciLit]

Who's interpreting? When did the concert take place? etc, etc!! Why the fuck are you so irreponsible (as so many on youtube) when you upload classical music?

[EnzoFoove]

awesome! but I think I'd like the prelude a lil' bit slower and the fugue a lil' bit faster .-.

[juaniluco888]

DEFINATELY a perfectionist, but I thought the preluduim was rushed too quickly! its like on the radio when they have like 10 secs to finish speaking all about the stupid copy rights before thier commercial ends!

[13ftrim]

its really interestring to look into the face of the man who composed this song while listening to it

[AuronpeacemakerG]

Someone have the Sheet music for the Fugue????

[leonardguetta]

@AuronpeacemakerG Go to IMSLP (Google it), and you'll find all the sheet music you need (and it's legal, everything's explained on the website).

[UncleC1025]

shred city, population: this guy at 0:50

Jesus christ!!

[Deph11s]

The Bloody Beetroots basically covered this song in "Have Mercy on Us".

[sempererectus1]

@Deph11s one of my favorite songs by them

[Deph11s]

@sempererectus1 Deph (hah) one my favs too. All of their songs are damn good. I just wish that the only song people knew them for was warp, don't get me wrong warp is the shit, but songs like Mercy just get overlooked entirely.

[sempererectus1]

@Deph11s i like ALL of their tracks

[Deph11s]

@sempererectus1 same!

[razgriznagase513]

this song is a BITCH to learn!! But once you can do it the prelude is actually a little fun. ^_^

[turtlelvr45]

@razgriznagase513 agreed

[pianoaddict06]

@razgriznagase513 lol its very fun

[freddiehangoler]

check this outttttttttttttttt

watch?v=Y8DMxKAe-aM

[GoTFCanada1230]

Whose the performer here? He plays it really well.

[FuzorDragon480]

@GoTFCanada1230 The performer is Sviatoslav Richter.

[sayspokartz]

@GoTFCanada1230 sviatoslav richter i guess

[urbano277]

What grade level is this piece??? I heard this piece was a grade 7 piece but I think it is probably a grade 8. I don´t know XD

Please someone reply and be sure of your answer cuz I need correct infromation this piece level....

Thanks ;)

[MercifulMe]

@urbano277 Grade 9 in the Royal Conservatory... but I assume you are talking about the British Conservatory?