C. F. E. BACH motif

The C. F. E. BACH motif is a musical motif, consisting of the notes C, F, E, B flat, A, C, B natural. The motif is a musical cryptogram, which represents the name of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach with the initials of his name - Carl Philipp (Filippo) Emanuel Bach -. The motif is based on the German musical nomenclature, in which the note B naturalis named H and the B flat named B - the same as in the ominous BACH motif -, however the initials of the composer’s name appear partially in German and in Italian version, instead of Philipp as Filippo.

History

The C. F. E. BACH motif appears in an unpublished Fughetta in F major, the composer is C. Ph. E. Bach himself. The composition was found in the Brussels Conservavorium by the Hungarian musicologist, Katalin Komlós in an unpublished manuscript, called Miscellanea Musica (B Bc 5895), which contains various compositional sketches, contrapunctal studies, thoroughbass exercises, modulation and chord progression schemes by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach.[1] This material contains a short five-part fughetta, written on the C. F. E. BACH motif, furthermore the BACH motif also appears in the composition in different transpositions. The volume is a handwriting of Michel, the copist of C. Ph. E. Bach from Hamburg.

The origin of the fughetta turns out from a letter of C. Ph. E. Bach to his friend from Greifswald, Johann Heinrich Grave, on April 28, 1784,[2] in which C. Ph. E. Bach wrote:

„…Someone have recently sent me a letter, mentioning the curiosity, that not only my family name, but the letters of my first name, written in Italian - C. F. E. – are “musical”.”

As a witty answer to the assumption, C. Ph. E. Bach continues the letter with the sketch of a fughetta, based on the C, F, E, B, A, C, H theme. The partiture of the F major fughetta, which was found in Brussels Conservavorium, is the same as the work in the letter of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach.[3]

References

  1. ↑ Komlós, Katalin (2010-01-20). "C. P. E. Bach "C-F-E-B-A-C-H" fughettája". Magyar Zene. Retrieved 2017-11-24.
  2. ↑ Komlós, Katalin (2015). Tanulmányok a 18. századi zene történetéből. Rózsavölgyi és Társa. p. 31. ISBN 978-615-80071-7-7.
  3. ↑ Komlós, Katalin (2015). Tanulmányok a 18. századi zene történetéből. Rózsavölgyi és Társa. p. 31. ISBN 978-615-80071-7-7.

Bibliography

  • Komlós, Katalin (2015). Tanulmányok a 18. századi zene történetéből. Rózsavölgyi és Társa. ISBN 978-615-80071-7-7.
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