In this Fugue from “The Art of the Fugue“, Bach shows us what he can do with a theoretical countersubject. It’s theoretical because he starts the piece without the presence of the actual subject known so well from the rest of the book. Then, he introduces this real subject (in sustained half notes -- see below) piece by piece in each part, slowly revealing to us how the two fit together.

This video is an experiment in overlaying and cropping, but the lighting isn’t perfect. I’ll do more later, but I obviously need full control over the ambient lighting to get it right. At this point, though, I prefer to upload what I have so far instead of whittle it down more.

Higher quality mp3:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Music by J.S. Bach. More Bach: [link]

Thanks for watching!

• Sinfonia to Cantata BWV 29 for 2 melodicas overdubbed in 9 parts (6)
• Multitrack Bach on YouTube: Badinerie from Orchestral Suite #2 (1)
• Brandenburg Concerto no. 1-1 for 12 melodicas, performed by one player (0)
• Brandenburg Concerto 4-3 arranged for 7 melodica parts and performed by one player (0)
• Brandenburg Concerto 3-3 with 7 melodica tracks, contained within 3 octaves (0)