''The Musical Offering'' (German: or ),

BWV The (BWV; ; ) is a catalogue of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. It was first published in 1950, edited by Wolfgang Schmieder. The catalogue's second edition appeared in 1990. An abbreviated version of that second edition, known as BWV ...

1079, is a collection of keyboard canons and

fugue In music, a fugue () is a contrapuntal compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject (a musical theme) that is introduced at the beginning in imitation (repetition at different pitches) and which recurs frequently in the co ...

s and other pieces of music by

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

, all based on a single musical theme given to him by

Frederick the Great Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the S ...

(King Frederick II of Prussia), to whom they are dedicated. They were published in September 1747. The ''

Ricercar A ricercar ( , ) or ricercare ( , ) is a type of late Renaissance and mostly early Baroque instrumental composition. The term ''ricercar'' derives from the Italian verb which means 'to search out; to seek'; many ricercars serve a preludial funct ...

a 6'', a six-voice fugue which is regarded as the high point of the entire work, was put forward by the musicologist

Charles Rosen Charles Welles Rosen (May 5, 1927December 9, 2012) was an American pianist and writer on music. He is remembered for his career as a concert pianist, for his recordings, and for his many writings, notable among them the book '' The Classical St ...

as the most significant piano composition in history (partly because it is one of the first). This ricercar is also occasionally called the ''Prussian Fugue'', a name used by Bach himself. The composition is featured in the opening section of

Douglas Hofstadter Douglas Richard Hofstadter (born February 15, 1945) is an American scholar of cognitive science, physics, and comparative literature whose research includes concepts such as the sense of self in relation to the external world, consciousness, an ...

's Pulitzer Prize winning book ''

Gödel, Escher, Bach ''Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid'', also known as ''GEB'', is a 1979 book by Douglas Hofstadter. By exploring common themes in the lives and works of logician Kurt Gödel, artist M. C. Escher, and composer Johann Sebastian Bach, th ...

'' (1979).

History

The collection has its roots in a meeting between Bach and Frederick II on May 7,

1747 Events January–March * January 31 – The first venereal diseases clinic opens at London Lock Hospital. * February 11 – King George's War: A combined French and Indian force, commanded by Captain Nicolas Antoine II Cou ...

. The meeting, taking place at the king's residence in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

, came about because Bach's son Carl Philipp Emanuel was employed there as court musician. Frederick wanted to show the elder Bach a novelty, the

fortepiano A fortepiano , sometimes referred to as a pianoforte, is an early piano. In principle, the word "fortepiano" can designate any piano dating from the invention of the instrument by Bartolomeo Cristofori in 1698 up to the early 19th century. M ...

, which had been invented some years earlier. The king owned several of the experimental instruments being developed by

Gottfried Silbermann Gottfried Silbermann (January 14, 1683 – August 4, 1753) was a German builder of keyboard instruments. He built harpsichords, clavichords, organs, and fortepianos; his modern reputation rests mainly on the latter two. Life Very little is kn ...

. During his anticipated visit to Frederick's palace in

, Bach, who was well known for his skill at improvising, received from Frederick a long and complex musical theme on which to improvise a three-voice fugue. He did so, but Frederick then challenged him to improvise a six-voice fugue on the same theme. Bach answered that he would need to work the score and send it to the king afterwards. He then returned to Leipzig to write out the ''Thema Regium'' ("theme of the king"): \relative c' Four months after the meeting, Bach published a set of pieces based on this theme which we now know as ''The Musical Offering''. Bach inscribed the piece "Regis Iussu Cantio Et Reliqua Canonica Arte Resoluta" (the theme given by the king, with additions, resolved in the canonic style), the first letters of which spell out the word ''

ricercar A ricercar ( , ) or ricercare ( , ) is a type of late Renaissance and mostly early Baroque instrumental composition. The term ''ricercar'' derives from the Italian verb which means 'to search out; to seek'; many ricercars serve a preludial funct ...

'', a well-known genre of the time.

Possible origin of the King's Theme

Humphrey F. Sassoon has compared the theme issued by Frederick II to the theme of an A minor fugue ( HWV 609) by George Frideric Handel, published in ''Six fugues or voluntarys for organ or harpsichord''. Sassoon notes that "Handel's theme is much shorter than the King's, but its musical 'architecture' is uncannily similar: jumps followed by a descending chromatic scale." He also elaborates on their additional similarities, which led Sassoon to suggest that Bach used Handel's A minor fugue as a structural model or guide for the ''Musical Offerings Ricercar a 6, and that its musical concepts may also have influenced Bach's development of the Ricercar a 3. Nevertheless, the Ricercar a 6 is longer and incomparably more complex than Handel's fugue.

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (, ; ; 13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian-American composer, music theorist, teacher, writer, and painter. He is widely considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was as ...

, in his 1950 essay on Bach, suggested that the ''Thema Regium'' was created by Bach's son, Carl Phillip Emanuel, on the orders of the king, as a well-prepared trap to embarrass J. S. Bach.

Structure and instrumentation

In its finished form, ''The Musical Offering'' comprises: *Two

s, written down on as many staves as there are voices: ** a Ricercar a 3 (a three-voice fugue) ** a Ricercar a 6 (a six-voice fugue) *Ten Canons: **Canones diversi super Thema Regium: ***2 Canons a 2 (the first representing a notable example of a crab canon or ''canon cancrizans'') ***Canon a 2, per motum contrarium ***Canon a 2, per augmentationem, contrario motu ***Canon a 2, per tonos **Canon perpetuus **Fuga canonica in Epidiapente **Canon a 2 "Quaerendo invenietis" **Canon a 4 **Canon perpetuus, contrario motu *A

Sonata Sonata (; Italian: , pl. ''sonate''; from Latin and Italian: ''sonare'' rchaic Italian; replaced in the modern language by ''suonare'' "to sound"), in music, literally means a piece ''played'' as opposed to a cantata (Latin and Italian ''cant ...

sopr'il Soggetto Reale – a

trio sonata The trio sonata is a genre, typically consisting of several movements, with two melody instruments and basso continuo. Originating in the early 17th century, the trio sonata was a favorite chamber ensemble combination in the Baroque era. Basic s ...

featuring the flute, an instrument which Frederick played, consisting of four movements: ** Largo ** Allegro ** Andante ** Allegro Apart from the trio sonata, which is written for flute,

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

and basso continuo, the pieces have few indications of which instruments are meant to play them, although there is now significant support for the idea that they are for solo keyboard, like most of Bach's other published works. The ricercars and canons have been realised in various ways. The ricercars are more frequently performed on keyboard than the canons, which are often played by an ensemble of

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small num ...

ians, with instrumentation comparable to that of the trio sonata. As the printed version gives the impression of being organised for convenient page turning when sight-playing the score, the order of the pieces intended by Bach (''if'' there was an intended order) remains uncertain, although it is customary to open the collection with the ''Ricercar a 3'', and play the trio sonata toward the end. The ''Canones super Thema Regium'' are also usually played together.

Musical riddles

Some of the canons of ''The Musical Offering'' are represented in the original score by no more than a short monodic melody of a few measures, with a more or less enigmatic inscription in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

above the melody. These compositions are called the ''riddle fugues'' (or sometimes, more appropriately, the ''riddle canons''). The performer(s) is/are supposed to interpret the music as a multi-part piece (a piece with several intertwining melodies), while solving the "riddle". Some of these riddles have been explained to have more than one possible "solution", although nowadays most printed editions of the score give a single, more or less "standard" solution of the riddle, so that interpreters can just play, without having to worry about the Latin, or the riddle. One of these ''riddle canons'', "in augmentationem" (i.e. augmentation, the length of the notes gets longer), is inscribed "Notulis crescentibus crescat Fortuna Regis" (may the fortunes of the king increase like the length of the notes), while a modulating canon which ends a tone higher than it starts is inscribed "Ascendenteque Modulatione ascendat Gloria Regis" (as the modulation rises, so may the king's glory).

Canon per tonos (endlessly rising canon)

The canon per tonos (endlessly rising canon) pits a variant of the king's theme against a two-voice canon at the fifth. However, it modulates and finishes one whole tone higher than it started out at. It thus has no final cadence.

Theological character

Among the theories about external sources of influence, Michael Marissen's draws attention to the possibility of theological connotations. Marissen sees an incongruity between the official dedication to Frederick the Great and the effect of the music, which is often melancholy, even mournful. The trio sonata is a contrapuntal ''

sonata da chiesa Sonata da chiesa (Italian: "church sonata") is a 17th-century genre of musical composition for one or more melody instruments and is regarded an antecedent of later forms of 18th century instrumental music. It generally comprises four movements, t ...

'', whose style was at odds with Frederick’s secular tastes. The inscription ''Quaerendo invenietis'', found over Canon No. 9, alludes to the

Sermon on the Mount The Sermon on the Mount (anglicized from the Matthean Vulgate Latin section title: ) is a collection of sayings attributed to Jesus of Nazareth found in the Gospel of Matthew (chapters 5, 6, and 7). that emphasizes his moral teachings. It is ...

(“Seek and ye shall find”, Matthew 7:7, Luke 11:9). The main title, ''Opfer'' (“offering”), makes it possible for the cycle to be viewed as an

Offertory The offertory (from Medieval Latin ''offertorium'' and Late Latin ''offerre'') is the part of a Eucharistic service when the bread and wine for use in the service are ceremonially placed on the altar. A collection of alms (offerings) from the ...

in the religious sense of the word. Marissen also points out that, canonic procedures often evoking the rigorous demands of the Mosaic Law, the ten canons likely allude to the Ten Commandments. Marissen believes that Bach was trying to evangelize Frederick the Great, pointing him to the demands of the Mosaic Law. In a recent study

Zoltán Göncz Zoltán Göncz (born July 23, 1958, in Budapest) is a Hungarian composer who often applies archaic forms ( canon, passacaglia) and complex structures in his compositions. He graduated from the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music in 1980. He was music e ...

has pointed out, the authorial injunction to seek (Quaerendo invenietis) does not only relate to the riddle canons but to the six-part ''ricercar'' as well, whose archaic title also means to ''seek''. There are several Biblical citations hidden in this movement, and their discovery is made especially difficult by various compositional maneuvers. The unique formal structure of the fugue provides a clue: certain anomalies and apparent inconsistencies point to external, nonmusical influences. Among Bach's duties during his tenure at Leipzig (1723–50), was teaching Latin. Ursula Kirkendale argued for a close connection with the twelve-volume rhetorical manual ''Institutio Oratoria'' of the Roman orator

Quintilian Marcus Fabius Quintilianus (; 35 – 100 AD) was a Roman educator and rhetorician from Hispania, widely referred to in medieval schools of rhetoric and in Renaissance writing. In English translation, he is usually referred to as Quintili ...

, whom

admired. Philologist and Rector of the Leipzig Thomasschule,

Johann Matthias Gesner Johann Matthias Gesner (9 April 1691 – 3 August 1761) was a German classical scholar and schoolmaster. Life He was born at Roth an der Rednitz near Ansbach. His father, Johann Samuel Gesner, a pastor in Auhausen, died in 1704, leaving the ...

, for whom Bach composed a cantata in 1729, published a substantial Quintilian edition with a long footnote in Bach's honor.

Adaptations and citations

The "thema regium" appears as the theme for the first and last movements of Sonata No. 7 in D minor by

Friedrich Wilhelm Rust Friedrich Wilhelm Rust (6 July 173928 February 1796) was a German violinist, pianist and composer. He hailed from a renowned musical family in Germany. He was the father of the pianist and organist Wilhelm Karl Rust and the grandfather of Thomas ...

, written in about 1788, and also as the theme for elaborate variations by

Giovanni Paisiello Giovanni Paisiello (or Paesiello; 9 May 1740 – 5 June 1816) was an Italian composer of the Classical era, and was the most popular opera composer of the late 1700s. His operatic style influenced Mozart and Rossini. Life Paisiello was born in ...

in his "Les Adieux de la Grande Duchesse de Russies," written in about 1784, upon his departure from the court of Catherine the Great. The "Ricercar a 6" has been arranged on its own on a number of occasions, the most prominent arranger being

Anton Webern Anton Friedrich Wilhelm von Webern (3 December 188315 September 1945), better known as Anton Webern (), was an Austrian composer and conductor whose music was among the most radical of its milieu in its sheer concision, even aphorism, and ste ...

, who in 1935 made a version for small

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

, noted for its

Klangfarbenmelodie ''Klangfarbenmelodie'' (German for "sound-color melody") is a musical technique that involves splitting a musical line or melody between several instruments, rather than assigning it to just one instrument (or set of instruments), thereby adding c ...

style (i.e. melody lines are passed on from one instrument to another after every few notes, every note receiving the "tone color" of the instrument it is played on): Webern's arrangement was dedicated to the BBC music producer and conductor Edward Clark. Another version of the ''Ricercare a 6 voci'' was published in 1942 by C. F. Peters in an arrangement for organ by the musicologist Hermann Keller, then based in Stuttgart.

Igor Markevitch Igor Borisovich Markevitch (russian: Игорь Борисович Маркевич, ''Igor Borisovich Markevich'', uk, Ігор Борисович Маркевич, ''Ihor Borysovych Markevych''; 27 July 1912 – 7 March 1983) was a Russian- ...

produced a realization for three orchestral groups and, for the sonata movements, solo quartet (violin, flute, cello, and harpsichord), written in 1949–50. The

Modern Jazz Quartet The Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ) was a jazz combo established in 1952 that played music influenced by classical, cool jazz, blues and bebop. For most of its history the Quartet consisted of John Lewis (piano), Milt Jackson (vibraphone), Percy H ...

used one of the canons (originally "for two violins at the unison") as an introduction to their performance of the standard song " Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise". The Royal Theme is played on the double bass, with

Milt Jackson Milton Jackson (January 1, 1923 – October 9, 1999), nicknamed "Bags", was an American jazz vibraphonist, usually thought of as a bebop player, although he performed in several jazz idioms. He is especially remembered for his cool swinging sol ...

(vibraphone) and

John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil rights activist who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashvill ...

(piano) weaving the two imitative contrapuntal voices above: Canon from the Musical Offering

Isang Yun Isang Yun, also spelled Yun I-sang (17 September 1917 – 3 November 1995), was a Korean-born composer who made his later career in West Germany. Early life and education Yun was born in Sancheong (Sansei), Chōsen (today part of independ ...

composed Königliches Thema for Solo Violin, a passacaglia on the Thema Regium with Asian and Twelve-tone influences, written in 1970.

Bart Berman Bart Berman ( he, ברט ברמן; born 29 December 1938) is a Dutch-Israeli pianist and composer, best known as an interpreter of Franz Schubert and 20th-century music. Career Bart Berman studied piano with Jaap Spaanderman at a predecessor ...

composed three new canons on the Royal Theme of ''The Musical Offering'', which were published in 1978 as a special holiday supplement to the Dutch music journal ''Mens & Melodie'' (publisher: Het Spectrum).

Sofia Gubaidulina Sofia Asgatovna Gubaidulina (russian: Софи́я Асгáтовна Губaйду́лина, link=no , tt-Cyrl, София Әсгать кызы Гобәйдуллина; born 24 October 1931) is a Soviet-Russian composer and an established ...

used the Royal Theme of ''The Musical Offering'' in her violin concerto '' Offertorium'' (1980). Orchestrated in an arrangement similar to Webern's, the theme is deconstructed note by note through a series of variations and reconstructed as a Russian Orthodox hymn.

Leslie Howard Leslie Howard Steiner (3 April 18931 June 1943) was an English actor, director and producer.Obituary '' Variety'', 9 June 1943. He wrote many stories and articles for ''The New York Times'', ''The New Yorker'', and '' Vanity Fair'' and was one ...

produced a new realisation of ''The Musical Offering'', which he orchestrated and conducted in Finland in 1990. The organist

Jean Guillou Jean Victor Arthur Guillou (18 April 1930 – 26 January 2019) was a French composer, organist, pianist, and pedagogue. Titular Organist at Saint Eustache in Paris, from 1963 to 2015, he was widely known as a composer of instrumental and voca ...

transcribed the entire work for organ in 2005.

Notable recordings

Karl Münchinger Karl Münchinger (29 May 1915 – 13 March 1990) was a German conductor of European classical music. He helped to revive the now-ubiquitous Canon in D by Johann Pachelbel, through recording it with his Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra in 1960. (Jean ...

, Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra (Decca, 1955) *

Milan Munclinger Milan Munclinger (3 July 1923, in Košice, Czechoslovakia – 30 March 1986, in Prague, Czechoslovakia) was a significant Czech flautist, conductor, composer and musical scientist. Biography Munclinger was the son of Josef Munclinger, an operati ...

Ars Rediviva Ars Rediviva was a Czech classical instrumental music group, whose historically-informed performances played a key role in the revival of Baroque music in Czechoslovakia. Ars Rediviva chamber ensemble The group was founded in 1951 in Prague ...

: Stanislav Duchoň, Karel Bidlo, Jiří Baxa, Josef Vlach, Václav Snítil, Jaroslav Motlík, František Sláma, František Pošta, Viktorie Švihlíková (Supraphon, 1959) * Karl Richter, Otto Büchner, Kurt Guntner, Siegfried Meinecke, Fritz Kiskalt,

Hedwig Bilgram Hedwig Bilgram (born 31 March 1933) is a German musician and educator. She was born in Memmingen. She studied piano from an early age and went on to study organ with Karl Richter and piano with Friedrich Wührer. In 1959, she won first prize at t ...

(DGG/Archiv Produktion, 1963) *

: Stanislav Duchoň, Karel Bidlo, Václav Snítil, Jaroslav Motlík, František Sláma, František Pošta, Josef Hála (Supraphon, 1966) *

Nikolaus Harnoncourt Johann Nikolaus Harnoncourt or historically Johann Nikolaus Graf de la Fontaine und d'Harnoncourt-Unverzagt; () (6 December 1929 – 5 March 2016) was an Austrian conductor, particularly known for his historically informed performances of music ...

, Concentus Musicus Wien (Teldec, 1970) *

Neville Marriner Sir Neville Marriner, (15 April 1924 – 2 October 2016) was an English violinist and "one of the world's greatest conductors". Gramophone lists Marriner as one of the 50 greatest conductors and another compilation ranks Marriner #14 of the ...

, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields (Philips, 1974) *

Reinhard Goebel Reinhard Goebel (; born 31 July 1952 in Siegen, West Germany) is a German conductor and violinist specialising in early music on authentic instruments and professor for historical performance at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. Goebel received his fir ...

Musica Antiqua Köln Musica Antiqua Köln was an early music group that was founded in 1973 by Reinhard Goebel and fellow students from the Conservatory of Music in Cologne. Musica Antiqua Köln devoted itself largely to the performance of the music of the 17th and 18th ...

(Archiv Bach Edition, 1979) *

Hans-Martin Linde Hans-Martin Linde (born 24 May 1930 in Werne, Germany) is a German noted virtuoso flute and recorder player of (mainly) baroque and early music Early music generally comprises Medieval music (500–1400) and Renaissance music (1400–1600), but ...

, Linde-Consort (EMI-Reflexe, 1981) *

Barthold Kuijken Barthold Kuijken (; born 8 March 1949, Dilbeek) is a Belgian flautist and recorder player, known for playing baroque music on historical instruments and particularly known for pioneering this manner of performance with his brothers, cellist ...

(flute),

Sigiswald Kuijken Sigiswald Kuijken (; born 16 February 1944) is a Belgian violinist, violist, and conductor known for playing on period and original instruments. Biography Kuijken was born in Dilbeek, near Brussels. He was a member of the Alarius Ensemble of ...

(violin),

Wieland Kuijken Wieland Kuijken (; born Dilbeek, 31 August 1938) is a Belgian musician and player of the viola da gamba and baroque cello. Biography Kuijken started his career in music in 1952 with the Brussels Alariusensemble of which he formed part until ...

(viola da gamba), Robert Kohnen (harpsichord) (Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, 1994) *

Jordi Savall Jordi Savall i Bernadet (; born 1 August 1941) is a Spanish conductor, composer and viol player. He has been one of the major figures in the field of Western early music since the 1970s, largely responsible for popularizing the viol family of ...

, Le Concert des Nations (Alia Vox, 1999) * Hanssler Edition, Gottfried von der Goltz, Petra Mullejans, Martin Jopp, Daniela Helms, Christian Gosses (Violin / Viola), Karl Keiser (flute), Ekkehard Weber (viola da gamba), Kristin von der Goltz (cello) and Michael Behringer (harpsichord / forte piano (BWV 1079) (Hanssler Edition CD92.133. 1999) * Konstantin Lifschitz (Orfeo 676071, 2008) (all movements on piano)

References

External links

*
"''The Musical Offering'': A Musical Pedagogical Workshop by J. S. Bach, or The Musical Geometry of Bach's Puzzle Canons"
nglish ''Schillerinstituttet'' anish * The

Mutopia Project The Mutopia Project is a volunteer-run effort to create a library of free content sheet music, in a way similar to Project Gutenberg's library of public domain books. It started in 2000.Portal page at thInternet ArchiveRetrieved January 24, 20 ...

has some of the music o
''The Musical Offering''

''Das Musikalisches Opfer''
''PianoSociety.com''
Performance of Trio Sonata
by

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) is an American organization dedicated to the performance and promotion of chamber music in New York City. It is the largest organization of its kind in the country for chamber music. CMS's home is ...

from the

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts, which houses significant examples of European, Asian, and American art. Its collection includes paintings, sculpture, tapestries, and decorative arts. It was foun ...

MP3 MP3 (formally MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) is a coding format for digital audio developed largely by the Fraunhofer Society in Germany, with support from other digital scientists in the United States and elsewhere. Orig ...

format *Phillips, Tony (March 1, 1999)
Feature Column: "Math and ''The Musical Offering''"
''What's New in Mathematics:

American Mathematical Society The American Mathematical Society (AMS) is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, and serves the national and international community through its publications, meetings ...

''
"Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), ''L'Offrande musicale'' – ''Musical Offering'', ''Musikalisches Opfer'' BWV 1079"
''ClassicalÀlacarte.com''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Musical Offering, The Compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach Riddles Compositions in C minor 1747 compositions Music with dedications