Book 2 - No. 14 - F sharp minor - Fugue
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Reflections

Three voices. Three subjects. A triple fugue, one of only two triple fugues in all of the Well-Tempered Clavier. Wrapped within this single fugues are, in a sense, three miniature fugues, each with their own subject and their own private exposition. This describes the first three of four sections in the fugue. And it is interesting to note that each of the three subjects have about the same number of entries, giving them fair balance in terms of exposure. But this is, after all, a single, unified fugue. The fourth and final section features an almost perfect complete counter-exposition of all three subjects simultaneously, saturating the texture with a most extraordinary synthesis.

The sectional organization of the fugue allows you to listen to each subject in isolation, since each appears first with its own complete exposition. The first subject reappears twice after the exposition of the second subject (before the exposition of the third subject), once with the second subject in counterpoint and once more alone. This would appear to be necessary for a coherent listening experience: after hearing the new, second subject, Bach reminds you of the first subject, bringing you back home as it were. The return creates a temporary closure, a stable platform for the further departure into the exposition of the third subject. The final section, which combines all three subjects into the climax, the greatest tension of the fugue, is initiated quite naturally by a return, once again, to the first subject. In summary, the fresh appearance of the first subject is an important marker of a new dramatic phase.

But there is something else happening over the life of this fugue. It begins just after the first episode (codetta) during the third entry of first subject. And it continues until the end fugue. As time passes, many of the voices grow longer and longer, maturing into fuller realizations of themselves. Like the very process of a fugue itself, the deeper implications are only gradually revealed.

The first hint is the free counterpoint against the first subject. At first, it uses two-note phrases. These are emphasized in the first episode. With the third subject entry, the counterpoint extends quite vividly into three-note phrases, again, featured in the subsequent episode. But the more dramatic growth occurs with the second and third subjects. The second subject appears in modified forms so that sometimes, it seems to be but four notes, sometimes six, and eventually, towards the end of the fugue, nine. The third subject grows over time as well, becoming a more and more extended sequence whose basic unit repeats initially once, then twice, and finally, three times. It is astonishing to consider this process of growth in conjunction with the synthesis of three fugues into one. It is even more astonishing to realize that this can all be apprehended as a purely musical experience.

It is characteristic for Bach's greatest fugues to have coherence and development on multiple levels. Every one is a jewel with multiple facets. And one is never really sure if one has seen them all. Perhaps just one more listening, one more look at the score, one more perspective to hear about. This is the signature of genius, the hallmark of a masterpiece.