Fugue No. 8 in D♯ minor, Well-Tempered Clavier I (BWV 853)
Johann Sebastian Bach · Level 6 (Expert) · Baroque · Piano
From the Well-Tempered Clavier, 48 preludes and fugues in every key, the pianist’s “Old Testament”. D♯ minor, 4/4, 87 bars (about 5 minutes), complete score.
▶ Play this piece with the interactive score
How to practise it
- Listen first: the site plays it while the score scrolls.
- Wait mode: the score waits for you at every note, at your own pace.
- Tempo challenge: play in time, with a score and a map of the bars you got right.
- In a fugue, every entry of the subject must stand out; in a prelude, keep a perfectly steady pulse. Key signature with 6 sharps: name them aloud before playing and spot the places where accidentals cancel them. One hand sometimes plays two voices: hold the long notes for their full value and let the main line sing louder than the accompaniment. Start hands separately in Wait mode, then put hands together at a slow tempo before speeding up gradually.
More pieces by Johann Sebastian Bach
- Partita 4 (BWV 828) — movement 6
- Aus meines Herzens Grunde (Chorale 1) (BWV 269)
- Two-Part Invention No. 1 in C major (BWV 772)
- Prelude No. 1 in C major, Well-Tempered Clavier I (BWV 846)
- Two-Part Invention No. 13 in A minor (BWV 784)
- Two-Part Invention No. 8 in F major (BWV 779)
- Little Prelude in F major (BWV 928)
- Two-Part Invention No. 4 in D minor (BWV 775)
Source : Mutopia Project · Public Domain