The Initials of J. S. Bach in D minor

This is a translation of the post „Die Initialen von J. S. Bach in d-moll
by Dr. Marshall Tuttle.


This was part of a lecture within the introduction to the project
IM KLANGSTROM” by Renate Hoffleit and Michael Bach Bachtischa
held in Ulm, Germany on December 7, 2018.

The name BACH consists of 4 note names. First of all, the German note names “h” and “b” are different in German than in English. In English the two notes are represented as “b” and “b-flat” respectively. (In this paper we will adhere to the German spelling. – translator –) In German “b” and “h” are distinct note names:

[plays “b – a – c – h”] (“b-flat – a – c – b” in English, here and in what follows.)

You can also play them in this order:

[plays “a – b – h – c”]

Or like this:

[plays “c – h – b – a”]

They are chromatic pitches each separated by one semitone.

Bach has often utilized these pitch sequences in his composition, as everyone knows, – at least every musician.

Now, in the “Chaconne” in D minor, he adds more of his name to the composition, namely the notes “g” and “es”. (“es” is the German spelling of the note “e-flat”. The translation adheres to the German spelling. – translator –) I don’t think anyone has yet grasped its meaning. Today is the first time that I am making this known. In the overall context these are special pitches.

With the “Chaconne” I first noticed that the pitches “b” and “a” are very common:

[plays “b” and “a” in different octaves.]

Most of the time they are the highest pitches or notes in the bass, so:

[plays from measure 17]

Bach Digital

In measure 18 the notes “b” and “a” are in the upper part:

[plays up to bar 19]

You can hear this chromaticism, that is the notes “c – h – b – a” from BACH in the lower part and the notes “b” and “a” in the upper part.

This chromaticism can be found again:

[plays bars 33 to 36]

Bach Digital

Again the chromatic sequence “c – h – b – a”.

These pitches are relatively common, because they are related to the key in D minor:

[(V7) – IV – (V7) – VI / i]

The tone “a” is the fifth of D minor:

[plays “d – f – a”]

… is the root of the dominant:

[plays “a – c-sharp – e”]

… and it is also the third of the relative major, F major:

[plays “f – a – c”]

------------------------------------------------------------------- This content is restricted to site members. If you are an existing user, please login. New users may register below.
Your " u s e r n a m e " can only contain < l e t t e r s > and < n u m b e r s >
and please < d o n 't > use < c a p i t a l > letters.
Your password will be sent to your email address immediately.
We will not share your email address with persons or organizations outside of the Atelier BACH.Bogen. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Dieser Inhalt ist registrierten Nutzern vorbehalten. Wenn Sie bereits registriert sind, loggen Sie sich bitte ein. Wenn Sie noch nicht Nutzer sind, dann können Sie sich gerne registrieren.
Bitte geben Sie für den Nutzernamen ("username") < n u r > alphanumerische Zeichen (Buchstaben und Zahlen) ein und verwenden Sie < k e i n e > Großbuchstaben.
Ihr Passwort wird Ihnen per email umgehend mitgeteilt.
Wir halten uns an den Datenschutz. -------------------------------------------------------------------

Existing Users Log In
   
New User Registration
*Required field