Bach, Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 582

Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, by Johann Sebastian Bach, performed and visualized by Stephen Malinowski.
FAQ
Q: I appreciate the animated graphical scores you make; how can I help?
A: There are many ways you can support my work:
free: watch my videos, like them, and share them with friends
¢¢¢: buy me a coffee ko-fi.com/musanim (one-time)
$$$: become a Patreon patron: / musanim (per-video/per-month)
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Q: What do the colors mean?
A: The colors indicate different melodic lines in the piece. The part for pedal (the lowest part) is always violet, and there is one stop (starting at about 4:55) that is always blue, but the rest of the colors just indicate different melodic strands (and don't correspond in a consistent way to anything in the score).
Q: What instrument is this?
A: The sound comes from two Ahlborn-Galanti organ modules. Most of the stops come from the A-G Silbermann module, but the 32-foot pedal stops and the contrasting stop (the one at 4:55) come from the A-G Romantic module.
Q: What are the gray bars?
A: The gray bars show the theme of the passacaglia (the first part of which is also the main subject of the fugue). The colored bars show the note duration of the performance, but the grey bars (which is bigger so that you can see it when it's behind the performed notes) show the duration of the notated version of the theme in its standard form (which is often very different from how it appears in the piece at a given point).
Q: Where can I get the score?
A: Here:
www.musanim.com...
Q: Could you please do a video of _______?
A: Please see this:
www.musanim.com...

[@smalin]

"But what have you done lately?" www.musanim.com/KZbinHighlights/

[@lordchameleon2650]

Stephen Malinowski that is a wonderful performance BWV 582

[@decagonist6054]

no wonder critics and historians all claim that J.S. Bach is the greates composer without contest. he was on a whole other level of understanding music

[@stupidguy97]

lol they do not all claim that.

[@marcossidoruk8033]

​@@stupidguy97 Most do.

[@marcsmith5275]

So, how would you two document your assertions?

[@marcsmith5275]

(Please give useful references to available scholarly works.)

[@marcossidoruk8033]

@@marcsmith5275 I don't feel like it.

[@johannsebastianbach2387]

Ahhhhh, the memories...

[@francoortiz8952]

Oh bro, I am your fan, when you will do your Next álbum

[@obsidian8587]

I am your fan I like your music you are the best

[@Itemtotem]

You wish

[@Itemtotem]

@@francoortiz8952 I'll have one out soon. It's rap and rock mostly though.

[@mc112007]

He died before y tube

[@pelphro]

Just think- this genius wrote this at the age of 18. His mind set was from another realm to which no one can fully comprehend to this day. To me this is the greatest piece of organ literature ever written. Thanks for producing this!

[@Grace_and_Truth78]

Or he was channeling spirits (like how all the "entertainment" we consume in this fallen world is produced).

[@jimmygarza8896]

​@Iamdust78 Bro really claimed music is demonic

[@DDD62bit]

Yes u Is Right !

[@bargledargle7941]

But why is that so brilliant? Because it adheres to contrapuntal rules or just because you like the sound of it?

[@elementallobsterx]

Everything here is flawless; the synchronized rhythm between each lead, the choice of melodies for the chord modulations, everything. It’s easy to forget the level the old geniuses were on until you re-listen.

[@jonasapeland2701]

11:55 , the legendary neapolitan sixth chord... Such a historically substantial peice of music theory in just a single chord. For me this whole work just leads to that one chord, every time I hear it after the 10 minutes of the previous variations i feel the goosebumps coming.

[@notatroll3018]

I love the gray bars, they really help to understand the fugue

[@Themostamazinguy]

+NotATroll What do they represent, the octave?

[@smalin]

+Themostamazinguy The theme.

[@Themostamazinguy]

smalin Oh cool!

[@Themostamazinguy]

What exactly gives an organ this distinct sound. I know there are a lot of stops, but this seems to be the go-to kind of organ sound. I can't really tell what it is.

[@smalin]

The main thing that makes a single note on an organ sound different from that of other instruments is that it's very stable: you press a key, the note starts and, once it's gotten started, it sounds pretty much the same until you release the key. The main thing that makes one stop on an organ sound different from another stop is that the relative strength of the harmonics is different for every stop. Added to that, organs are in churches, so there's a lot of reverberation in the sound. If you put a few hundred people playing recorders, flutes, and other wind instruments in an organ loft, and told them to play completely without expression (that is, without varying their tone), it would sound a lot like an organ. There are distinctive types of flutes that are used in organs, but the bulk of the difference comes from other factors.

[@donwolter1940]

Welp, looks like the neighbors will be listening to Bach today.

[@malodavout6729]

mine always listen to bach

[@ullrichherz7053]

When I turned from pop to classics as a teenager, I bought my first vinyl with Bach's Toccata and Fugue. But the piece I really fell in love with was the Passacaglia! After 43 years it's still my favorite. The piano transcription of Igor Zhukov is great too. Being a non musician I appreciate Your optical animations a great deal! Thanks a lot for Your grand job.

[@gliese436-b5]

Ullrich Herz 4:54 sounds beautiful 👌

[@mohammednabih4216]

your videos mean happiness to me

[@smalin]

What a sweet thing to say. Thank you.

[@fangxusun1723]

Never thought music could be so visually enjoyable.

[@pawncube2050]

Mixing music with vision is an amazing world

[@Gabry2138]

The fugue... a scream of passion and the perfection of a mosaic, joined together...my God...

[@malodavout6729]

my ears cried as it is just the most beautiful thing they never heard

[@prinzparsiphal777]

Bach wrote this masterpiece at the age of 22.- Absolutely unbelievable.

[@geiryvindeskeland7208]

"...at the age of 22". How do you know?

[@prinzparsiphal777]

geir øyvind eskeland The most probable year of its composition is 1707.- He was 22.

[@smalin]

geir øyvind eskeland en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passacaglia_and_Fugue_in_C_minor,_BWV_582

[@prinzparsiphal777]

smalin The piece was inspired by the now famous Passacaglia in d minor by Buxtehude.In 1705 Bach walked 320 km from Arnstadt to Luebeck to meet him.

[@geiryvindeskeland7208]

Sorry for my bad English. Thank you so far, but I like to know where do you get the information? Source?

[@peterjongsma2754]

Must have blown the congregation of his Lutheran parish away. Going to Church can be fun.

[@andrewashdown3541]

The visualisation of the 'thinning-out' (5 mins in) is spectacular

[@cosmofoxgaming1268]

That’s my favourite part of any piece of music.

[@eren7683]

04:51 - 05:32 is literally fascinating.

[@cevirthek262]

I agree, it's definitely one of my favorite parts

[@Wedneswere]

Absolutely!!!!

[@yvonne766]

I couldn't agree more!

[@hian]

This is my favorite piece of both Bach and in classical music in general.

[@uwufffsunchez2626]

why? :O

[@uwufffsunchez2626]

Is it still?

[@malodavout6729]

@@uwufffsunchez2626 this is both always the same thing and always a different thing with constant powerful variations

[@osa313]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/p4W6gZ2Am8yIgs0&ab_channel=Jo%C3%A3oBarradas This version is transcendental to me, hope you can enjoy it

[@catkeys6911]

That bass pedal variation at 10:37 always blows me away.

[@yglofmi]

I have no words. Perhaps the most extraordinary piece of music ever.

[@tomweaver3964]

Bars 120-128, 5:11 - 5:32, are sublime, I've never heard anything like it in all of Bach, and no other recording scratches my itch like this one. The tones you chose make it sound like it belongs in 2001: A Space Odyssey. And the visual representation so pure, a perfect accompaniment. Bravo

[@amigosnerds4810]

-Bach Is not a stream, but a sea -Beethoven

[@oscarpalaciosruiz]

When I was a kid I fell in love with Bach's music, in part because my perception at the time was that through him I had understood music: it was a series of intricate "staircases". Thank you for these videos.

[@smalin]

I've played it on pedal harpsichord, and it's pretty nice --- a lot clearer sounding. But there are good aspects to the organ version too; I think they're complementary.

[@Sign-oi4oc]

I broke the song into sections 0:08 - First Section (Passacaglia) 0:31 - Second Section 1:14 - Third Section 1:34 - Fourth Section 1:54 - Fifth Section 2:13 - Sixth Section 2:34 - Seventh Section 2:54 - Eighth Section 3:13 - Ninth Section 3:34 - Tenth Section 3:55 - Eleventh Section 4:15 - Twelfth Section 4:35 - Thirteenth Section 4:54 - Fourteenth Section 5:11 - Fifthteenth Section 5:33 - Sixteenth Section 5:53 - Seventeenth Section 6:12 - Eighteenth Section 6:35 - Nineteenth Section 6:56 - Twentieth Section 7:19 - Twenty-first Section (Fugue)

[@HyShroomOfficial]

0:08 - Thema 0:31 - Variation I 0:53 - Var. II 1:14 - Var. III 1:34 - Var. IV 1:54 - Var. V 2:13 - Var. VI 2:34 - Var. VII 2:54 - Var. IIX 3:13 - Var. IX 3:34 - Var. X 3:55 - Var. XI 4:15 - Var. XII 4:35 - Var. XIII 4:54 - Var. XIV 5:11 - Var. XV 5:33 - Var. XVI 5:53 - Var. XVII 6:12 - Var. XIIX 6:35 - Var. XIX 6:56 - Var. XX 7:19 - Et fuga Very close, though. As an aside, something funny that Bach did is that he had twenty-one variations (including the theme) and twelve entries of the theme in the fugue, 12 reversing 21. He loved his symbolism.

[@Sign-oi4oc]

4:54 and 5:53 just beats Chopin, Liszt, etc. You name it. That part just beats every pianist.

[@Hanesboi]

Ironically, it's from 5:53 to 6:13 that the best part comes in

[@user-ul3mn1jp8q]

I Promise

[@KMRamirez]

A Passacaglia was a musical form on which a bassline was stated as a theme, and then repeated with variations played over the top of it. A Chaconne is similar, but with a chord progression instead of a bassline. #themoreyouknow

[@maximegarcia217]

Could you confirm that please ?? Thank you, i am looking for the differences since quite a long time

[@Ambidextroid]

I think the definition is a little more flexible, at least for the time. Otherwise wouldn't Handel's Passacaglia count as a Chaconne instead?

[@Jps3bs]

Absolutely one of the greatest pieces of music ever written! Thanks for posting and thanks to Johann Sebastian Bach!

[@Fireball1787]

Still one of my all-time favourite Bach pieces - and the visual representation by Stephen Malinowski add another dimension! Just love it!

[@TimGallois]

"I'm not trying to manipulate people. I'm just making videos." This will go down in history as words of truth!

[@55archduke]

Stephen - i think your performance is lovely, and the animation is SO helpful in hearing what is happening.

[@smalin]

Thanks!

[@MrJdsenior]

I was trying to figure out why this allows so much more insight into the music than a sheet of notes to a non-pro musician. I expect that it is the fact that the temporal nature of "filling out" the active notes with highlights and colors (attack, sustain, release), along with the fact that the creator of this video took the time to split out the lines into a logical arrangement of each (theme, maybe) into easily readable lines in vertical position. In any case, it is fascinating to hear/watch...AND, for me, Bach IS the master of writing for the great organ (no snide comments from "lookers on", please). Nice performance, BTW.

[@daniyarsharafutdinov820]

I totall agree.

[@MissViscous]

it’s also that it gives insight into how the organ is played - what are the foot pedaled notes, what are the keyboards - and hints about stops and registration

[@lucaskn415]

4:54 Oh my god!

[@AEFic]

I always return to these earlier videos, which helped teach me to appreciate polyphonic music. There are later designs that I enjoy as well, but this scheme just seems so much cleaner and visually appealing than some of the newer ones, which visually distract me. Everything here seems so clearly laid out and works beautifully for Bach especially. Strange to think of how nostalgic my connection to some of these videos is!

[@BadHorse43]

Agree. The newer fancy visuals often obscure what notes are played and when.

[@AEFic]

That and I think these older schemes just look better aesthetically. There were a few other great schemes: I think the Debussy Arabesque looks perfect for the music, and the Brahms piano quartet was fantastically rendered. The Nancarrow ones were great too!

[@nikkia3d]

I agree. Beautifully illustrates the fugue voices and ultimately how to comprehend, assimilate and project for the player and listener. I would think composers and conductors also would benefit greatly. Graphic illustration of "data" seems to contribute much useful information to build upon vast complexity. Again, deep gratitude to @smalin for this practical as well as aesthetic contribution to culture.

[@mikematthews5872]

Wonderful I love the way Bach constructs a beautiful melody from the Pedal notes , he even carries it on into the Fugue I first heard it in 1960 in Germany in Freiburg cathedral I think, bliss !

[@hadesblue4942]

This is what makes life worth living.

[@rolliefingaz1515]

KEWL.

[@Kyogre382]

Yesterday, I randomly remembered this video I've seen in middle school. It has been seven years. Back in 2016, I had to describe this video (and the music) for a test in music class.

[@Hanesboi]

What do you think of it now? I keep coming back to it often lol

[@cosmofoxgaming1268]

Imo. The greatest piece of music ever.

[@andrewashdown3541]

I place it alongside BWV 548 & BWV 552

[@cosmofoxgaming1268]

@@andrewashdown3541 BWV 140 is my next favourite at the moment

[@andrewashdown3541]

@@cosmofoxgaming1268 which is a cantata, of course. It wld be difficult to pick any one cantata but those I would consider might include: 42, 80, 180, 182, 70, 71, 63, 66, 131 ... and many more!

[@cosmofoxgaming1268]

@@andrewashdown3541 all sublime

[@Francis1930]

This is by far my favourite Bach organ piece, next to the great Fugue in G minor, both of which I listen to everyday. There is nothing with the quality of these recordings, Our organist at Church places this as a recessional piece at the end of Mass, and I am transfixed, not only because of the beauty of this piece of music, but because my Cathedral size parish Church (built by Hanson consecrated in 1850) who's inspiration was Pugin is ornate and high Victorian Gothic. The two are wedded in perfect harmony. I love this piece by the greatest composer who has ever lived!

[@johnatwell2753]

Yes! I use it to teach High Schoolers about passacaglia and fugues -- passacaglias being a somewhat simpler form to hear and understand than fugues are. Showing them how the same musical material is used and exploited. Hopefully showing them how the composer is playing with musical ideas, resulting not just in enjoyment, but what I like to call "delight", maybe even "joy" -- and every once in a while, "bliss". Not that I succeed very often... In college our Glee Club sang a concert at a church in Bakersfield that consisted of all Bach (including the motet Jesu, meine freude). The audience was scant, but during "Jesu" the choir and the director both felt this "taking off" feeling, that they were actually "channelling" Bach, that they weren't just singing, but communicating. Some of them (in small groups) spoke to each other about it afterwards, and at the next rehearsal, the director expressed his astonishment about it. It became the legend of "Bach in Bakersfield". I'm not sure if it was because of, or in spite of, the size of the audience. It's the kind of thing that all performers strive for.

[@smalin]

Starting with passacaglias is a good idea! Thanks for the tip.

[@TheBardbarians]

I seem to be in some kind of a Bach fugue marathon right now. First I listened to Toccata and Fugue in D minor, then Little Fugue in G minor, and now this. I feel like the Count from Sesame Street. "ONE flat, ah ah ah! TWO flats, ah ah ah! THREE flats, ah aha ah!"

[@smalin]

kzbin.info/aero/PLtj_HurkS7Zy9rkShXB3658k1RDJX6aRX kzbin.info/aero/PLtj_HurkS7ZxrGJzC4u2f95vxzZNnlZ74 kzbin.info/aero/PLtj_HurkS7ZyzWU6_flH9RG2K2E1tWd1f kzbin.info/aero/PLCE480D16F5DC6DD1

[@EugeneOneguine]

Go for the Well-Tempered Clavier, the 7 toccatas bwv 910-916 and the Art of the the Fugue. (Glenn Gould for all)

[@TheBardbarians]

I looked that up, but it sounded so wrong. I love Bach, and I love piano, but Bach being played on a piano is just so wrong.

[@MalaksMessage]

I think this is possibly the cleverest piece ever written!

[@koyunbaba73]

On the subject of making the world a better place, I'd be hard pressed to come up with a name of someone who has had as much success in that regard as Johann Sebastian Bach. Some other figures to consider may include: Adam Smith, William Shakespeare, Leonardo, and perhaps a few other names come to mind. Interestingly, Bach wasn't trying to make a better world. He was trying to provide for his family, and he was trying with every composition, to glorify God in the highest way possible. And in this last endeavour, I think he succeeded like no man before or since. Incidentally, I believe that those of us who have the ability to play Bach's music, ultimately share in bringing glory to God, whether or not that is what we are intending to do. You Smalin, with your brilliant system of animating musical scores, have done more for meaningful pedagogy in music than any ten people I know. You have made the greatest music accessible for people who have difficulty reading music, and more importantly, you have created a visual reference for music's most important elements. I'm thinking particularly about texture. Whereas I would have to teach texture to my students in order to arrive at a logical performance practice for any given piece, your animations instantly make it clear. I expect my students to be able to justify every decision they make in performance by tying their performance to theory. So now when a student and I study theory, I often make a point of showing one of your videos. I'm certain that these videos will be used more and more in academic settings in the years to come. In fact, in 2008, I gave a presentation on the subject of music, cognition, and memory, and I used one of your videos. While the students liked my presentation, I think they were much more impressed with your video, and the long term implications of including them in their teaching. You have created a wonderful tool. Congratulations and thank you.

[@musanim]

Hearing how much use you've made of my work warms my heart.

[@Atrasoir]

koyunbaba73 it's a great way to show off the skills a musician has worked for.

[@musanim]

Please email me if you'd give me permission to quote you on my web site.

[@koyunbaba73]

Of course you may quote me! I want your videos to be seen all over the world!

[@smalin]

Can you please email me your name and tell me where you teach? See www.stephenmalinowski.com/contact.html for my email address.

[@mathersdavid5113]

Superbly played and presented. The electronic organ offers much better clarity of the voices than the large, traditional instruments often used for this piece.

[@chesterg.791]

I'm just blown away by the genius of this every time I listen. The visual representation shows how incredible this piece is.

[@davidpinkney9886]

I ignore any people that hate this piece because it is the best piece ever!!!!!!

[@catherineden.374]

Added to my "Legendary videos" playlist :)

[@smalin]

Have you seen the recent re-make? kzbin.info/www/bejne/rqGbfZqmaN98gs0

[@cevirthek262]

A part of me just wants to do nothing and listen to this all day and I'm not even that into classical music, maybe I should listen to it more...

[@JcFiscus42]

I’ve been there, when I first discovered classical when I was 18, it was so astonishing it was all I listened to ever since!! There’s still music I’m discovering to this day, and in 25 now.

[@constantinparadan541]

Baroque* not classic but yeah

[@jean-philippe-devise]

Not a bad idea. 😃

[@alis.b.4631]

@@constantinparadan541 Baroque music IS classical music.

[@fearworks7249]

@@JcFiscus42 The discoveries never end.

[@MissViscous]

to see how all the parts are played by one person on one complicated instrument is a joy!

[@dopo8333]

Thanks for these visualizations - the only way for a layman to see how mathematically and musically perfect this music is.

[@timgillison1175]

That is brilliant; shows off Bach's genius even more than just listening (and you are pretty smart to have produced it!) Thanks very much for sharing it, it's wonderful! Tim

[@floriandevuyst]

4:54 and 5:12 are out of this world

[@eric-the-funny-baron]

Yes, indeed. Both the music and the visuals feel like climbing the steps to Heaven. I also like the fact, that the main motif always remains through the piece, also in this part. The motif merges every part of this piece to one big piece.

[@fearworks7249]

@@eric-the-funny-baron ground bass, innit.

[@eric-the-funny-baron]

@@fearworks7249 Yes, exactly, I mean the ground bass😁. The melody of it almost always stays the same, so it creates the very base of the whole music piece.

[@fearworks7249]

@DФПiТД РЦИж Who do you think is making constellations, Bach or SMalin?

[@fearworks7249]

@@eric-the-funny-baron Go and listen to these two pieces which were directly influenced by this work. Beethoven 32 variations in C minor ,for piano. And Brahms, the 4th movement of his 4th symphony in E Minor.

[@giustinoscalise3177]

Just WOW on every level. Absolute music mastery.

[@melcomepay6668]

Justin Scalise yes

[@wunhunglo2880]

this video puts the complexity of this masterpiece in clear perspective

[@JcFiscus42]

Also, simplicity.

[@ryans930]

The fugue gives me goosebumps every time

[@MrJdsenior]

Frisson, aint it wonderful ;-).

[@johanschneiders6293]

I got to hear this piece live. It was magnificent.

[@H2O2FaMo]

If you listen carefully, this music speaks to you!

[@bargledargle7941]

It said to me "The comment above is false"

[@jpw8583]

Almost makes me cry. He was the god of music.

[@appalling22]

this is basically a 50 track EP of Bach VIP remixes of his own tune

[@aloysiuskurnia7643]

I love how you visualize the theme.

[@xbigd1988x]

On another note, Smalin, your contributions to KZbin have greatly enriched my life and my experiences with music. You have done an amazing service to us all.

[@amadeus5889]

I remember the first time I heard this live: the opening chords of the first variation nearly knocked me back into my seat. When played on a big enough organ, this piece will rattle your bones.

[@smittywerbenjagermanjensen1172]

I listen to this at least once every day. I never get tired of it. What a brilliant composition and performance of a great song. Thanks smalin

[@gliese436-b5]

Smitty Werbenjagermanjensen - Same thing with me, except I listen to Toccata and Fugue in d minor everyday instead.

[@MasonIshida]

Smitty Werbenjagermanjensen It is not a song. Songs have words, this PIECE is beyond words....

[@smittywerbenjagermanjensen1172]

Gliese 436-B- That is what I started with. After I found Passacaglia and Fugue, I haven't gone back. In my opinion, this is a much more complex piece.

[@SourCream1000]

My favourite version of this piece, thank you Mr Malinowski!

[@lordchameleon2650]

Of course Richter's version is the best for me too but i wish his recordings were newer

[@floriandevuyst]

MONUMENTAL. Thank you Master B.A.C.H.

[@altareggo]

Believe it or not, it sounds even better when played on a huge pipe organ in a gigantic medaeval cathedral!!

[@_____c___482]

altareggo no shit Sherlock 😂

[@johnhoppin7928]

fugues are awesome because there's always that anchor - the repeating "voice" or riff, as seen in modern genres such as jazz fusion and progressive rock.

[@tacobender1643]

9:10-940 perfection

[@marcellovacca3155]

0:00 to 12:36 my friend 🤗

[@tahaouhabi3520]

Till the end of pedal section

[@y.martel842]

sounds so dramatic i love it

[@smalin]

Whether or not is was his favorite instrument, playing (and writing music for) the organ was one the main duties of Bach's jobs with the church.

[@Sign-oi4oc]

0:08 - Passacaglia 7:19 - Fugue

[@rheiagreenland4714]

"I see your harmony and raise you my counterpoint" *terrified classical composer noises because they know it's all over because Bach's about to Rock.*

[@nanjingmonkey467]

Whaat are you talking about man seriously tho

[@jimmygarza8896]

*Baroque

[@rheiagreenland4714]

@@jimmygarza8896 yeah that's true. Just a colloquialism on my part.

[@RustySimRacing]

I bet Bach never wanted to end his fugues, just wanted to keep writing and writing. But when it comes time to end the piece, the man sure knew how to do it well. He has some of the coolest counterpoint in his fugue codas, I especially like what he does with the bass voice in those

[@smalin]

I don't think you'd say that if you studied their structure more. They may feel like they just go on and on, but the reason that they don't feel aimless or repetitive is that there's a structure/design that makes sense as a whole. It's not "just keep doing fugue stuff until you feel like stopping and then add an ending," but rather "there are N of possibilities with these materials that I'd like to explore, so we do possibility 1, possibility 2, possibility 3 ... possibility N, and then we're ready to finish it off." A few of his earliest fugues (many of which are no longer believed to have been written by him) are long and aimless, but by the time he was in his first master period, they're pretty tight (even if they're long).

[@8kw7mx9]

@@smalinvery insightful comment

[@therealEmpyre]

Well done! Bravo! I read that during his lifetime, J. S. Bach was more famous as an organist than as a composer. It must have been glorious to hear the master himself performing his works!

[@user-uq7qf8bi1l]

For anyone looking; 7:20 is the fugue

[@MrVaskor]

Thanks! Just out of interest, from a music theory perspective, am I correct in thinking that this piece is actually essentially one long fugue?

[@user-go4kx4ii8k]

@@MrVaskor no, it isn't because the first part is written in the passacaglia form. However the main theme in the two composition is the same and that's the reason you could consider this work as an individual whole, but it isn't a longe fugue.

[@robertmartin4646]

I am practicing this piece for a recital in April...I was trained at Juliard and Friends University to play the Organ...my first recietal piece was Bach Tocatta D MINOR....this piece is very hard but practice practice practice!!

[@smalin]

When you were trained at Juilliard, didn't they teach you how to spell it?

[@wyattpeters2454]

smalin While I respect you as the uploader of this video, that could very well by a simple typo rather an actual spelling mistake.

[@smalin]

Wyatt Peters There are two things that argue against that. One is the nature of the misspelling: there are two letters wrong (Juilliard, not Juliard), and typing a single L in place of a double L is not a common typo. The second is that misspelling Juilliard is something that lots of people do but something I've _never_ seen a real Juilliard graduate do. So I'm suspicious.

[@wyattpeters2454]

smalin Oh sorry, i thought you were referring to his misspelling of toccata.

[@smalin]

Wyatt Peters Heh-heh. No, graduates of Juilliard sometimes misspell toccata.

[@Fireball1787]

I love Bach's organ works, and this is one of my absolute favourites. The Passacaglia is a simple theme that endures throughout the piece and undergoes various additions, embellishments and transformations that are quite transcendental. [Sorry, that sounds pompous, but was not intended to be.] The Fugue that follows is a masterpiece of invention; so much so, that I return again and again to rediscover new nuances in this magnificent work. As you may deduce. I LOVE IT! :-)

[@ryanhaynes1825]

You're a hard one to pin down.

[@mc112007]

Pim

[@squigglycircle]

This piece introduced me to Bach and the world of music at the age of six and still (now through this ingenious visualisation) there are so many new aspects to be discovered.

[@GoIdenbaum]

This would make a hell of a level in Super Mario.

[@kylewhitehead1684]

Castlevania all the way.

[@amyhaile4555]

LordLukste indeed

[@cowpower12]

Your videos are phenomenal... and they have tremendous value as a teaching tools. I have shown them to many people to explain the genius of Bach and the nature of counterpoint and the concept of a fugue. Thank you so much for you work in putting this beautiful video together.

[@alfonsofernandezdemiguel8909]

Escaleras,pirámides,colinas,grutas,lagunas,simas,despeñaderos,valles,cimas y abismos de notas. Extraordinario J.S.B

[@anibalconcha6612]

Verdad? Este señor creaba catedrales góticas pero con música. Es verdaderamente impresionante!

[@garysogar6522]

What a wonderful representation of the complexity of the playing! Well done!

[@melcomepay6668]

4.59! And the whole performance. Sitting back eyes closed with my ear buds firmly in place, and volume turned up, =a musical heaven! ❤️.

[@NintenDECS]

same brother, this is my favorite part of the entire piece

[@melcomepay6668]

Daniel Yes ...and happy new year!

[@benjaminmarks8765]

Listen to gert van hoefs

[@wade8537]

Ear buds?! you are doing Bach a disservice.

[@melcomepay6668]

wade Well yes , but as I am not in a great hall, like the Albert for example, I find this ( for me anyway) the best way to SHUT OUT the world around me , and just allow the music to sink into my ( very old!) brain. I have always from a very young age, got most pleasure from the sheer VOLUME of music. This way does the job.

[@eblackbrook]

Bach laughs at metal musicians who think they are heavy.

[@ShearsOfAtropos]

I'm pretty sure everyone laughs at metal musicians

[@molylepke9522]

@@ShearsOfAtropos lol

[@jacques9515]

@@ShearsOfAtropos why

[@bait5257]

​@@ShearsOfAtroposbruh

[@taylordiclemente5163]

I use this video to teach people about polyphony. They always understand. Thank you for your work, Mr. Malinowski!

[@smalin]

You're quite welcome. Who do you teach?

[@taylordiclemente5163]

smalin At this point, just whomever takes interest. I'm studying the lute, and am about to start a DMA in historical performance. I plan to teach in academe.

[@FunkMan53]

On the contrary! I've lived 42 years in Germany and have visited the little church in Leipzig where Bach wrote Cantatas every Sunday, played and improvised on the organ, beside also having had 7 children. I have GREAT respect for him. He really set the course for European classical music. I was just referring to the software smalin used to display the notes.

[@HellbilleH]

Well, its coolness factor hasn't gone stale at all. I love using these to help share classical music appreciation, because the original sheet music just doesn't quite do the same.

[@blankavarcl8146]

Thank you for all beautiful music and video , thank you

[@kumo-kun1831]

I love that you highlighted the passacaglia theme throughout it! Great work!!!

[@siddhuzplace3737]

never realised this piece ended and i was still in that bliss.

[@BruceBoppoTiemann]

I greatly appreciate the visual effect in these animated pieces. I would suggest, though, that purple light has a higher frequency than red light, and so to be consistent with frequency between sound and light that the colors should maybe be inverted. To whomever was asking about the grey, that's outlining the original melody.

[@smalin]

Bruce Tiemann The frequencies of colors are not intuitively obvious --- who would guess, for example, that blue was a higher frequency than red? I design my displays based on what people perceive. I majored in physics before I switched to music and know a fair amount about optics, but I'm more interested in making displays that are effective cognitively than in making ones which are ordered by principles that have nothing to do with perception.

[@BruceBoppoTiemann]

I work in the optics field, maybe it's just me. I do still like the presentation you have created, it speaks to me much better than ovals which are solid or hollow, and variously flagged.

[@nicaragusa]

Stephen Malinowski ---> Bravo!

[@smalin]

[@trevjr]

Amazing how some of the greatest works of Bach were written in performance of his 'job'. This visualization really shows the symmetrical perfection of the music, really great, I was unable to write a comment while it was playing.

[@smalin]

Doing a second version of a video is just about as much work as doing the video in the first place, so except in special cases, I choose to spend my time doing another piece rather than a re-make.

[@briarjensen2123]

Bach really was thee goat

[@762radron]

I can't play a church organ, but it's fascinating to see all those alternating and simultaneous movements. Looks like hard work.

[@StyzeSoulmaker]

I've known this piece for longer, but I only just noticed that all the variations are constructed out of melodic chunks of the bass line.

[@nannymac47]

I am teaching my youngest son some analysis with your videos. He has so much natural talent. A great ear with perfect relative pitch like his mommy and what a voice. He could do anything he wanted if only he had motivation and confidence in his talent. I am trying to get him to go into music production as his great ear and good taste would stand him well in that endeavor.

[@davidpinkney9886]

5:53 you are a great organ player!

[@Hwyadylaw]

That's actually far from the most difficult part of the piece

[@_____c___482]

That’s actually way easier than it seems

[@_____c___482]

He is good, but playing fast does NOT make you a good musician. That’s one of the most annoying music stereotypes.

[@112steinway]

This is not just music my good sir, this is a wonderful combination of music, visual, and performance art. Bravo!

[@smalin]

I didn't play this on an organ; I played it using the conductor program (as I've done in several of my videos). It is a real-time performance (by me), but through a special interface (you can read about this on my web site --- look for "Computer-assisted performance" in the site index). I'm not trying to manipulate people. I'm just making videos. Sometimes I perform, sometimes I don't. If the videos are entertaining, that's what's important; I'm not trying to prove anything.

[@samoinborut1339]

Holy Bach.