How many voices are used in fugue?

The number of parts (voices) in the fugue is likewise flexible. Most fugues are in three or four voices (“à 3” or “à 4”), but not all of these are used at any given moment; it is common for an episode to proceed in as few as two voices.

What are the 4 parts of fugue?

Key Terms

Exposition – the opening section of the fugue, ends when the theme is presented in each voice.
Countersubject – new material in the voice in which the subject was previously stated.
Episodes – transitions based on the exposition material.
Development – subject and answer being developed.

What are voices in a fugue?

In music, a fugue (/fjuːɡ/) 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 course of the composition.

What fugue has the most voices?

That 7-voiced Credo fugue in the BMM (BWV 232) is the biggest complete, strict Bach fugue I can think of at the moment (7 strictly fugal parts, equally melodic and sharing musical material all the way through…plus a free bass).

What are episodes in fugues?

An episode is any passage that does not include the whole subject. Episodes use motives and fragments from first part of fugue, often in sequences. In the middle section of the fugue, entries and episodes may alternate, a pairing of subject matter and motive development passages.

How do you identify fugue voices?

A fugue starts with the 1st voice/part playing a melody/phrase called the Subject. The subject is played by the 1st voice in the tonic key. The 2nd voice then enters playing the “answer”. The answer is a transposed version of the subject (usually in the dominant key).

What are fugal devices?

A fugue is a multi-voice musical form that hinges on counterpoint between voices. Composers can write fugues for a single instrument (most notably a piano or other keyboard instrument), or they can write them for several individual players.

What is fugal music?

fugue, in music, a compositional procedure characterized by the systematic imitation of a principal theme (called the subject) in simultaneously sounding melodic lines (counterpoint). The term fugue may also be used to describe a work or part of a work.

What is the musical style of Johann Sebastian Bach?

Baroque era
Johann Sebastian Bach (March 21, 1685 – July 28, 1750) was a prolific and versatile German composer and organist of the Baroque era, whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra and keyboard drew together almost all of the strands of the Baroque style and brought this musical form to its ultimate maturity.

How do you write Stretto?

Stretto occurs when entries of subject and answer overlap each other, the second beginning before the first is finished.
Augmentation of the subject means statement of it in notes of greater value, usually double.
Diminution of the subject means statement of it in notes of smaller value, usually half.

What key is the 3rd Voice in a fugue?

The answer is a transposed version of the subject (usually in the dominant key). The 3rd voice then enters playing the subject again. It is in the tonic key, but often an octave higher or lower than the 1st voice. Note: If I was writing a 4th voice/part for my fugue then the 4th voice would enter at this point playing the answer.

What are the parts of a fugue?

What is a fugue in music?

A fugue starts with the 1st voice/part playing a melody/phrase called the Subject. The subject is played by the 1st voice in the tonic key. The 2nd voice then enters playing the “answer”.

Why do fugues have alternating subject entries and episodes?

This alternating of Subject entries and Episodes can continue in a fugue for as long as the composer wants. The Episodes in a fugue are often used by the composer to modulate to different keys. This brings added variety to the entries of the Subject later on in the fugue. Have a look/listen to my 2nd episode below.