Prelude and Fugue in E major
About this arrangement
This is No. 9 in Book 1 of the Well-Tempered Clavier, compiled in 1722 in Köthen. Bach also copied the prelude into the little keyboard book he made for his son Wilhelm Friedemann.
Play the prelude slowly with each hand alone, keeping the 12/8 flow even. In the fugue, find each entry of the subject and bring it out a little. Loop the bars where all three voices are busy at 50%.
Start with short loops.
Use the section list as a practice map. Start at 50% tempo, loop one section, then return to the full piece once the hand shape feels stable.
Choose Right or Left to focus on one hand. Wait for note checks the highlighted notes as you play them on the screen or a connected MIDI keyboard.
Before you practice.
01 How hard is Bach's Prelude and Fugue in E major?
The prelude and the three-voice fugue are both on the lighter side for Bach, so an intermediate player can work on them. The fugue still asks you to keep three voices independent.
02 How long is BWV 854?
Our score has 53 bars in total: the prelude is 24 bars and the fugue is 29 bars.
03 What should I practise first?
Start with the prelude to get used to the key and the touch. For the fugue, learn the subject on its own, then add the other voices one at a time.
04 Is the BWV 854 prelude from a teaching book?
It also appears in the Klavierbüchlein für Wilhelm Friedemann Bach, a keyboard book Bach put together for his eldest son, as Praeludium 6.
