Five Fugues from J. S. Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier (Book II) “in the Rendition” of Mozart

Abstract

The second half of the 18th century is filled with events in the sphere of evolution of the musical language and means of form-generation. In the forefront of the sharp contradictions between the art of the baroque style (labeled the “old,” “learned” style by many contemporaries) and the principles affirmed by the gallant style a certain new style has been formed labeled “the Mozartian contrapuntal style” by Boris Asafiev. Naturally, the aspiration towards the renewal of the musical language and the means of form-generation occurs on all the “levels” of the music of those times and captures into its whirlwind many composers, but Asafiev, ascribing many of the artistic achievements of that time to Mozart, is justified in his position. In his turn, Mozart ended up being drawn into this evolutionary elemental force by the indisputable force of Bach’s achievements. One of the first actions of Mozart, who reacted with wonderment to the grandiosity of Bach’s music (and to the perfection of the latter’s artistic principles), was the creation of the Fugue “Fur Konstanze,” as well as the original transcriptions for string quartet of five of J. S. Bach’s clavier fugues. These compositions are perceived to be fundamental works not only for Mozart, but also for the epoch in general, when the question is that impetuous process of evolution of the fugue which was signified by the finale of the Jupiter Symphony by Mozart himself and gave a mighty impetus for the subsequent development of this contrapuntal forms for all times. Keywords: the evolution of the fugue, ricercar, ricercar qualities, contrapuntal style, gallant style.