Merry Christmas all,

So I decided to attempt a Prelude and Fugue from the WTC I. But I have a question before major muscle memory sets in; how come some play the prelude with staccato and some observe the slurs without playing staccato?

Are the markings Bach's own? What is acceptable? Is it in the "eye of the beholder"?

Thanks much,

-jg

p.s. Could one of the admins delete my bio page and recordings (4 of them). After listening to Leslie Howard's recording of the Liszt Waltz, mine sounds like absolute crap and is an insult to Liszt and the website. Also, the quality of "piano" sound is way above par (which is a bad thing in golf )

Slurs are surely not Bach's markings. Any markings beyond ornaments are surely not Bach's markings, and if you've got an edition that has other markings, then I wouldn't trust the ornaments either (not that it matters much).

By the way, Juuf, if you want an edition of the WTC that's good quality for a low price, try the Dover edition, which has both books in one volume. It's available through amazon new for $10.36 or less, and more expensive editions do not improve much on this one. The best editions are those that don't add a bunch of markings that weren't on the autographs, as it seems yours does.

As for performance practice, typically it's "correct" to treat the piano as if it were a harpsichord, and to use a lot of staccato. But you will find a lot of differing opinions. It's considered bad form by many to use any sort of expressive approach to Bach (dynamic fluctuation, or god forbid rubato), and it's also considered bad form by some to use pedals (fortunately a diminishing opinion - conservative use of pedals in Bach makes the music meld to the piano, imo), but again, you will come across many differing opinions on this.

We will not delete a pianist from the site just because a professional recording is better. That does not make your recording crap. Amateurs can never compete with professionals. You have to get to grips with that, or else give up playing (or become a professional yourself).

Good luck with the Bach, and do whatever feels right to you. There are many options in Bach, and it is impossible to please everybody.

Oh, and congrats on playing Bach, btw. Haven't you been one of those allergic folks previously?

what do you mean by "allergic"? Allergic to Bach? No, more like mortified by the sheer geniousness of his music and skill required to play even the most "simplest" of Bach compositions.

If I can pull off these two, then only Brahms and Rachmaninov will be on my "Be Very Afraid Of" list.