The Art of Fugue - Bach

Before the actual recital last Wednesday, a brief lecture was given by Jeremy Summerly, the founder of Oxford Camerata, about the nature of fugue and Bach's mastery of the form. Summerly considers that the series in The Art of Fugue makes a satisfactory whole and is impressively cumulative in its effect. He quoted, ironically, the words of Hans Gal who said that no sane musician who ever lived would have conceived the idea of performing, in succession, 19 contrapuntal pieces in the same key. However, as Colm Carey chose to omit the four canons and the three mirror fugues, the 19 pieces sensibly became 12. Bach's own intentions are not known as he died before he finished the work.

Though the fugues are connected by the use of the same theme, or its variants (there are eight altogether), there are 10 other themes used and when two, three or four of them are used together, in sequence, overlapping or coinciding, the music becomes extremely complex. Happily, Colm Carey's neat articulation and careful choice of organ-stops meant that the textures never became muddy and each part could be heard with individual distinctness.

This clarity made Bach's extraordinary facility in the interweaving of themes as exciting as possible, inspired by impressionism, expressionism or any striving after unnecessary dramatic effect. There was enough drama in the contrapuntal ingenuity, and enough variety in the speeds selected for each piece and in the registrations. No.5 had a change of mood half way which was quite startling and the selection of recorder-like pipes for No.8, which opens with two previously unheard themes, was almost cheeky. Only in the final unfinished fugue was the pedal organ used and its low notes added to the nobility of this piece. It was a worthy end to a performance that was scrupulously faithful to the original.