Organ music - an introduction
The chances are that anyone who has ever set foot in a church when the organ is being played will have been exposed at some point to the organ music of J S Bach. More than just a daily staple of the organist's diet, Bach's organ music represents the pinnacle of the art.
Grand toccatas and fantasies; the sophisticated counterpoint of preludes and fugues; virtuoso sets of variations; show-off concertos; astonishingly tuneful pedagogical sonatas; and chorale preludes ranging from complex fugal subjects to simply elaborated harmonisations of Lutheran chorales - in all these genres, Bach built on existing, inherited models and launched them into new territories of the imagination.
Bach appeals to players because the technical challenges range from easy to very difficult, so at every level of skill, organists can experience the power of the master. And he appeals to listeners because the music is exciting, of consistently high quality, challenging, stimulating and satisfying.
Much of Bach's organ music dates from the periods during which he held organist's posts (Arnstadt, Mühlhausen and Weimar ). Paradoxically, Bach was never to enjoy regular access to a large organ made expressly to his own specification; though he played on, and acted as consultant for, many fine organs, part of the integrity of his organ writing stems from the fact that it does not require huge organs to make it effective.
The vast majority of beginners at the organ use Bach's collection of chorale preludes - the Orgelbüchlein - as their first learning manual and introduction to Bach. Like so many organists of his time, Bach grew up under the influence of the North German master, Dietrich Buxtehude, whom Bach visited on (latterly unauthorised) extended leave from his post at Arnstadt, by walking all the way to Lubeck, where Buxtehude was based. Earlier organ works display many of the exuberant, quasi-improvisatory aspects of North German style. Bach's mature works develop the North German virtuoso style of pedal playing and integrate it into preludes, toccatas, fantasias and fugues which require great technical skill of the player. It's thought that the 'Great' G minor Fantasia BWV 542, with its very catchy fugue, was famous in Bach's own day.
The other indispensable part of the Bach organ music tradition is the organ chorale, most commonly realised as a 'prelude', variation, fugue or fughetta. Defined as 'any solo organ piece based on a Lutheran chorale melody, the music could be an introduction to a hymn, a hymn accompaniment, an interlude between verses of between parts of the liturgy, or a stand-alone piece such as the Fugue on the Magnificat. It's reported that Bach improvised on the chorale melody, An Wasserflüssen Babylon for half an hour, especially to please the elderly composer, Reincken.
Many contemporary reports, and Bach's first biography, by Forkel, attest to Bach's virtuoso technique; indeed, so imaginative was his exploitation of the tone colours of the organ, that in one of his posts he drew complaints from the church authorities about the 'strange harmonies' he used in the chorale accompaniments.
The legacy of Bach's organ music can be found in later composers' reverence for the stylistic models of the Baroque period - especially notable in the work of Mendelssohn and Reger. For as long as there are organs, it is inconceivable that Bach's organ music will not be performed upon them.
© Graeme Kay /BBC
