JS BACH Invention No 8 In F Major
Bridget Mermikides presents her arrangement of Johann Sebastian Bach’s two-part Invention In F Major. Learn either or both parts and play along!
Two-part arrangement of a Bach etude. Learn either or both, and play along with Bridget.
In this issue I’ve arranged a work for two guitars, by the profoundly brilliant composer Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). Bach’s talents and accomplishments are hard to overstate, but suffice it to say he is widely recognised as one of, if not the greatest composers and musical minds in the Western canon of all time. His enduring legacy of works displays an unsurpassed command of harmony, melody, and a balance of technical precision with emotional expression. In particular, Bach’s musical control of canon (the imitation of musical material) and counterpoint (multiple independent melodies) are a continuing source of inspiration and inspiration to musicians through the ages.
These techniques pervade his work, but a very accessible demonstration appears in his two-part Inventions which were composed as short keyboard exercises in counterpoint. They were written in his early 30s during his appointment as Director of Music in Köthen (a time of unusual professional freedom for Bach). Each hand of the keyboard plays single-line independent melodies in a conversation through beautiful chord progressions. They are all wonderful, but here I’ve selected the two-part Invention No 8 In F Major BWV 779, as it can be arranged really effectively for two guitars without changing the key. I have made decisions on adjusting the octaves but otherwise this arrangement is just as Bach wrote it three centuries ago.
Here Guitar 1 acts as the right hand of the keyboard while Guitar 2 is the left hand. However, this piece shouldn’t be thought of as a melody ‘over’ an accompaniment; instead both parts hold equal importance, and together imply a sophisticated harmonic sequence. This is the essence of counterpoint: multiple musical lines that make sense horizontally (melodies) as well as vertically (harmony). This wonderful music is endlessly fascinating, and seems to grow in its beauty every time it is played and heard, so take as long as you need to learn either or both parts. I’ve provided the audio of each part separately so that you can pick either part to learn and play it with me along with my recording. The technical demands are quite clear here, this has to be played with rhythmic clarity (and I suggest shortening the quaver notes a little), and it’s worth working section by section so that in performance, every moment gleams.
NEXT MONTH Bridget tabs Romance Andante from Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachmusik II
“Bach’s talents are hard to overstate. Suffice it to say he is one of, if not the greatest composers and musical minds in the Western canon”