Weekend Gems #3 – Canons on the first 8 fundamental notes of the Goldberg Variations by Johann Sebastian Bach
I wish I had been alive in 1974 to hear the news. It must have delighted scholars and lovers of Bach’s music the world over.
Many music lovers know Bach’s ingenious Goldberg Variations, written for the keyboard player Johann Gottlieb Goldberg to play for his patron, Count Kaiserling, who suffered from insomnia on account of an ailment and so requested music of “smooth and lively” character to occupy his mind as he suffered.
Bach’s response to the request is a tour-de-force of variation technique, including dances and ingenious canons which vary the lovely, if plain, theme. The Goldberg Variations were one of the eccentric Canadian pianist, Glenn Gould’s, favorite works and no one plays them quite like he does. See this post for a taste.
In 1974 Bach’s original published copy of the Goldberg Variations was discovered, and a surprise lay in wait on the final page: 14 canons composed on the first 8 fundamental notes of the aria. That means the first 8 notes of the bassline, roughly the first complete phrase. Those note form a pleasing bassline with a clear and idiomatic harmonic progression.
And you wouldn’t think much of them, but Bach’s incomprehensibly fertile mind saw endless possibilities. I just heard a quote from Ezra Pound: “A genius sees ten possibilities where others see only one”. I don’t think I have to tell you what Bach is 🙂
Even the number, 14, is significant. It is a gematriah of Bach’s name: B (2) + A (1) + C (3) + H (8) = 14! Bach’s mind was never at rest.
Let him blow your mind with these 14 canons, which incorporate a catalogue of contrapuntal techniques that most have never conceived of. You may hear resonances of other clever pieces from this week. You can start the series here if you missed it. Altogether, a great way to cap off an entire week of very clever music!
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