Bach's Use of Dance Rhythms in Fugues: Part II Author(s) : Natalie Jenne Source: Bach, JANUARY, 1974, Vol. 5, No. 1 (JANUARY, 1974), Pp. 3-8 Published By: Riemenschneider Bach Institute

Bach's Use of Dance Rhythms in Fugues: Part II
Author(s): Natalie Jenne

Source: Bach , JANUARY, 1974, Vol. 5, No. 1 (JANUARY, 1974), pp. 3-8
Published by: Riemenschneider Bach Institute
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/41639911
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Bach's Use of Dance Rhythms in Fugues
Part II
By Natalie Jenne
Concordia College
River Forest, Illinois
III
BOURRÉES Bach
Bachininthetheandcomposition
composition gavottesJohann
of fugues. , as wellForkel,
of fugues.
Bach'sasfirst
other Johann dances, Forkel, were used Bach's by J. first S.
biographer, states that Bach carried the art of writing dances further than
any of his predecessors or contemporaries:
He tried, and made use of, every kind of meter to diversify,

as much as possible, the character of his pieces. He eventually
acquired such a facility in this particular that he was able to
give, even to his fugues, with all the intricate interweaving of
their single parts, striking and characteristic rhythmic propor-
tions in a manner as easy and uninterrupted from the beginning
to the end as if they were minuets.25
There is not, however, a satisfactory description of how these dance

rhythms function in fugues. Composers and performers such as Bach were
undoubtedly so familiar with dances that detailed analyses were not in
demand. The problem for today's performer, consequently, is difficult but
not insoluble. One approach lies in a thorough analysis of the fugues
themselves; and possibly the best method for analyzing Bach's music is
described by his illustrious student, J. P. Kirnberger, about whom Forkel
says:
He was one of the most remarkable of Bach's scholars, full of

the most useful zeal and genuine noble sense of the art. Besides
the development of Bach's mode of teaching composition, the
musical world is indebted to him for the first and only tenable
system of harmony, which he has abstracted from his master's
practical works.26
J. P. Kirnberger (1721-1783) was a composer, performer, teacher,

and theorist. His compositions display, among other things, great contra-
puntal skill and an interest in the so-called ars combinatoria. As a per-
former, he filled several posts, including those of violinist to Frederick the
Great and Kapellmeister to Princess Amalia of Prussia. He was greatly
renowned as a teacher, and as a theorist he was considered to be one of
the greatest authorities of his time.

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Of all of Bach's students, Kirnberger wrote most extensively about his
teacher's music. Die Kunst des reinen Satzes in der Musik is probably his
most famous work.27 The purpose of Die Kunst ... is clearly stated by
Kirnberger in these words:
I hold the method of Johann Sebastian Bach to be the best

and only one; it is to be regretted that this great man never
wrote anything theoretical about music and that his teachings
have reached posterity only through his pupils. I have sought to
reduce the method of the late Johann Sebastian Bach to princi-
ples and to lay his teachings before the world, to the best of my
powers, in my Art of Pure Composition ,28
His reliability as a teacher of Bach's method need not rest solely on

his own claims or those of Forkel. He was chosen by Carl Philipp Emanuel
Bach (the one son who was particularly interested in seeing his father's
compositions properly appreciated) to collaborate on an accurate publica-
tion of the Four-Part Chorales.29 Emanuel Bach also had occasion to de-
fend Kirnberger s views concerning J. S. Bach's theory of the fundamental
bass.30
A discussion of Kirnberger 's basic concepts of harmony, the funda-

mental bass, and dissonance can be found in two excellent articles: Putnam
Aldrich's indispensable study on rhythmic harmony31 and Joyce Mekeel's
comparative study of Kirnberger and Marpurg.32 The most important
single feature of Kirnberger 's analytical method, which is based on the
fundamental bass, is that it is directly related to performance. He says
while discussing Bach's contrapuntal writing:
The latter [J. S. Bach] was the most daring in this respect,
and, therefore, his things require a quite special style of perform-
ance, exactly suited to his manner of writing, for otherwise
many of his things can hardly be listened to. Anyone who does
not have a complete knowledge of harmony must not make bold
to play his difficult things; but if one finds the right style of
performance for them, even his most learned fugues sound beau-
tiful.33
Kirnberger's preoccupation with harmony and its relationship to good

performance is of paramount importance for this study, because he believed
that rhythmic qualities of motion and repose are inherent in the har-
monies of a composition. He equates dissonance with rhythmic activity
(arsis) and consonance with rhythmic repose (thesis). Harmony, itself,
has rhythmic significance. Therefore, harmonic analyses of Bach's fugues,

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by means of Kirnberger s method, will reveal their hidden rhythmic struc-
ture. The main points of this method may be summarized as follows:
1) The whole of harmony rests on two fundamental chords:
the triad, which may be major, minor, or diminished (Ex. 5a)
and the seventh chord, which may take any of four forms (Ex.
5b). The major triad is the most perfect; the minor is less per-
fect; and the diminished triad is least perfect, or most dissonant.
The four forms of the seventh chord progress in like manner
from No. 1, the most perfect, to No. 4, the least perfect. (Notice
that there is no diminished-seventh chord.)
2) The inversions of these triads and sevenths progress

similarly. The root position is most perfect. The succeeding
inversions become less perfect. One might say that a root posi-
tion major triad is most perfect and, therefore, most consonant
and that the third inversion of the seventh chord (No. 4) is least
perfect and, therefore, most dissonant.
3) These harmonies, then, contain greater or lesser degrees

of rhythmic activity or inactivity. A root position triad, particu-
larly if it is major or minor, represents repose; any of the seventh
chords (considered progressively from Nos. 1-4) represents
activity. In other words, the ear ascertains, by virtue of the type
of chord and inversion that it hears, the rhythmic content inher-
ent in that chord. Harmony, itself, is rhythmic.
4) The fundamental bass, or chord roots, of a composition
should move naturally - that is, by fourths and fifths, with
occasional descending thirds and rising seconds. These are the
best progressions, but not the only ones. A rising third may indi-
cate a modulation, the departure from one key to another. A
chord can be missing in a progression, in which case an elision
has occurred. The ear will unconsciously supply the missing
chord. Example 6a shows measures 5 and 6 of the f-minor
prelude from the Well-Tempered Clavier (II). The fundamental
bass (abbreviated f.b.) is supplied by the author. In this exam-
ple, Bach's fundamental bass descends a second. If we interpo-
late, in Example 6b, the missing resolution of the seventh, the
fundamental bass moves properly, but the ear finds it less inter-
esting. Since (according to Kirnberger) Bach considered the ear
to be the final arbiter, the more interesting progression, though
incomplete, must be considered the best progression.
5) The root of a true diminished chord moves up by a
fourth (Ex. 7a). If the root does not move in this manner, it is

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unecht (unauthentic) and the fifth below the bass must be imag-
ined or supplied, because it does not occur in the chord.34 In
modern parlance, the chord in Example 7b takes on a "dominant"
function.
6) Dissonances are either essential or non-essential. Seventh

chords are essential dissonances because they do not take the
place of consonances, but maintain a place of their own as chords.
Seventh chords cannot resolve until a change of harmony occurs.
They prevent the ear from resting on the present harmony and
propel it to the harmony of the next root tone (Ex. 8a). Orna-
ments, passing tones, and suspensions are all non-essential dis-
sonances because they can be omitted from any progression with-
out causing ambiguities. A suspension, unlike a seventh chord,
must be resolved before the fundamental bass moves to another
harmony (Ex. 8b).
(Editors Note: The final section of Dr. Jenne's article will be published
in the April 1974 issue of BACH.)
Footnotes
25 H. T. David and A. Mendel, The Bach Reader, rev. ed. (New York, 196
323-324.
26 Ibid., p. 332.
27 J. P. Kirnberger, Die Kunst des reinen Satzes in der Musik (Berlin und K
berg, 1774-79), 2 Vols.
28 J. P. Kirnberger, Gedanken über die verschiedenen Lehrarten in der Kompo
als Vorbereitung zur Fugenkenntnis (Berlin, 1782). Quoted in Eng. trans,
T. David and A. Mendel, The Bach Reader (New York. 1966). t>. 262.
29 David and Mendel, p. 272.
30 Ibid., pp. 44 7-450.
31 Putnam Aldrich, " 'Rhythmic Harmony' by Johann Kirnberger," in Studies in
Eighteenth-Century Music , A Tribute to Karl Geiringer on his Seventieth Birthday
(New York, 1970), pp. 37-52.
32 Joyce Mekeel, "'The Harmonic Theories of Kirnberger and Marpurg," Journal of
Music Theory, Vol. IV (I960), pp. 169-193.
33 David and Mendel, op. cit., p. 261.
34 Kirnberger, Die Kunst . . . , op. cit., p. 47.
Examples
Ex. 5a. Major, Minor, and Diminished Triads

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Ex. 5 b. Four Forms of the Seventh Chord
Ex. 6a. J. S. Bach, Well-Tempered Clavier (II), F-Minor Prelude , meas.

5-6
Ex. 6b. Bach, F-Minor Prelude , meas. 5-6 (With Interpolated Resolution
of the Seventh)
Ex. 7a. Resolution of a True Diminished Chord

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Ex. 7b. Resolution of an Unauthentic Diminished Chord
Ex. 8a. Essential Dissonance of a Seventh Chord and Its Resolution
Ex. 8b. Non-essential Dissonance of a Suspension and Its Resolution

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Bach's Use of Dance Rhythms in Fugues: Part II Author(s) : Natalie Jenne Source: Bach, JANUARY, 1974, Vol. 5, No. 1 (JANUARY, 1974), Pp. 3-8 Published By: Riemenschneider Bach Institute

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Bach's Use of Dance Rhythms in Fugues: Part II Author(s) : Natalie Jenne Source: Bach, JANUARY, 1974, Vol. 5, No. 1 (JANUARY, 1974), Pp. 3-8 Published By: Riemenschneider Bach Institute

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Bach's Use of Dance Rhythms in Fugues: Part II

Author(s): Natalie Jenne

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/41639911

This content downloaded from

He tried, and made use of, every kind of meter to diversify,

There is not, however, a satisfactory description of how these dance

He was one of the most remarkable of Bach's scholars, full of

J. P. Kirnberger (1721-1783) was a composer, performer, teacher,

This content downloaded from

I hold the method of Johann Sebastian Bach to be the best

His reliability as a teacher of Bach's method need not rest solely on

A discussion of Kirnberger 's basic concepts of harmony, the funda-

Kirnberger's preoccupation with harmony and its relationship to good

This content downloaded from

2) The inversions of these triads and sevenths progress

3) These harmonies, then, contain greater or lesser degrees

This content downloaded from

6) Dissonances are either essential or non-essential. Seventh

Ex. 5a. Major, Minor, and Diminished Triads

This content downloaded from

Ex. 6a. J. S. Bach, Well-Tempered Clavier (II), F-Minor Prelude , meas.

Ex. 7a. Resolution of a True Diminished Chord

This content downloaded from

Ex. 8a. Essential Dissonance of a Seventh Chord and Its Resolution

Ex. 8b. Non-essential Dissonance of a Suspension and Its Resolution

This content downloaded from

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