Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in E Major, BWV 854: A Plaintive Pastorale
The Prelude and Fugue in E Major, BWV 854 is the ninth piece in Book I of J.S. Bach’s The Well-Tempered Clavier, composed in 1722. The prelude is a flowing pastorale. Its lilting triplets, unfolding in 12/8 time, evoke the gentle bucolic dance of the shepherd. What begins as a sunny musical conversation between higher and lower voices, takes a plaintive turn. A shadowy dissonance (0.26) is followed by a weeping descending …