Fugue in D Minor for Sting Trio

[Fredrick zinos]

Fugue in D Minor for String Trio is now on my page. Sooner or later every pretender to the art of music desires to write something in the style of Bach. Here is my feeble attempt. 

[Ann Rodela]

I think Bach would be pleased.

[Fredrick zinos]

Thank you Ann. Bach, when praised for his music, growled "Anyone could do as much if they worked as hard" .. Yeah sure..!

[Kristofer Emerig]

Well Fredrick, you beat me to the punch. I still intend on doing a keyboard interpretation of this one. You already know it's one of my favorites, so I'll spare you the fulsome and redundant praise... great piece, I'm glad you finally got it on here.

[Fredrick zinos]

Thank you Kristofer. Coming from someone who is a master of counterpoint and who writes actual music instead of the ambient gurgling that fills too many such sites, I take your words as high praise indeed.

Kristofer Emerig said:

Well Fredrick, you beat me to the punch. I still intend on doing a keyboard interpretation of this one. You already know it's one of my favorites, so I'll spare you the fulsome and redundant praise... great piece, I'm glad you finally got it on here.

[Yaiza Varona]

Dear Fredrick,

When you posted this track, I went to listen to it eagerly (bad habitude of mine, being impatient) and, I immediately thought " This is Bach" . Then I read what your intention for the track was, I was astonished! Must I say more? Hats off, Fredrick!! Hats off!!! Thanks so much for sharing!!

[Fredrick zinos]

Ah Yazia... Bach had certain ways of delaying cadences that I think gives depth, power and the illusion of having had some sort of musical experience when listening to his work. I tired to employ some of that. The counterpoint isn't quite Bach because I don't have Bach's brain or work ethic, in spite of which this little exercise comes out all right. Shows what happens when one subordinates "creative instincts" to the rules of composition I guess. Now then, lets have more of your magical music!

Yaiza Varona said:

Dear Fredrick,

When you posted this track, I went to listen to it eagerly (bad habitude of mine, being impatient) and, I immediately thought " This is Bach" . Then I read what your intention for the track was, I was astonished! Must I say more? Hats off, Fredrick!! Hats off!!! Thanks so much for sharing!!

[Kristofer Emerig]

Uh-oh... now we have demonstrable evidence that even Bach's intellect had it's limitations. We could all reproduce the Musical Offering if we just tried harder? That's like saying any chain smoker can break the world record in the quarter mile if they just try to run faster. You have to credit Bach with at least extending his followers some hope, even if a delusional one

Fredrick zinos said:

Thank you Ann. Bach, when praised for his music, growled "Anyone could do as much if they worked as hard" .. Yeah sure..!

[Fredrick zinos]

Oh the guy was a barrel of laughs.. once when a musician, a keyboard player, complained that Bach's music was too hard, the phlegmatic dutchman roared back at him "YOU HAVE 10 FINGERS ALL AS HEALTHY AS MINE!" (BTW, "The Phlegmatic Dutchman" was the original title of the Wagner opera before he chickened out and changed it into something about a Dutchman and Hollandaise Sauce... i've never quite figured that one out)

Kristofer Emerig said:

Uh-oh... now we have demonstrable evidence that even Bach's intellect had it's limitations. We could all reproduce the Musical Offering if we just tried harder? That's like saying any chain smoker can break the world record in the quarter mile if they just try to run faster. You have to credit Bach with at least extending his followers some hope, even if a delusional one

Fredrick zinos said:

Thank you Ann. Bach, when praised for his music, growled "Anyone could do as much if they worked as hard" .. Yeah sure..!

[Jeff Cattie]

45: - eh, not a strong spot

1:03 - weird - melodic fragment C B A G F E doesn't seem to work there... Eb maybe? Weirdness up until the trill, too.

1:15 - trill? on what note?! This whole section seems... OFF.

1:33 - this ceases to be counterpoint...

1:44 - weird modulation

1:53 - harmonically ambiguous

2:08 - haha duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh!!!!! The part leading up to it was nice - dominant pedal? But that tutti figure was over the top...

2:45 - another weird trill...

3:06 - going crazy here... not sure why there is a flurry of ?sixteenths?

3:12 - definitely not harmony bach would have used

aaaaand done... well, it has Bach moments, but more often than not it doesn't... I want to say that maybe some of the harmonic motion is what Bach might have done? But there are places where the modulation is too sudden and just not prepared for in enough time. There are moments where I'm literally left wondering 'what was that?!' and I never get my answer.

Start with a simpler subject. That seems to be the entire problem - it's an unnecessarily complex subject that is made even more complicated by mistakes. If I could perhaps see the music, I might be able to be more specific - and I'd like to be, for the sake of an interesting piece.

[Fredrick zinos]

Jeff Cattie said:

45: - eh, not a strong spot

1:03 - weird - melodic fragment C B A G F E doesn't seem to work there... Eb maybe? Weirdness up until the trill, too.

1:15 - trill? on what note?! This whole section seems... OFF.

1:33 - this ceases to be counterpoint...

1:44 - weird modulation

1:53 - harmonically ambiguous

2:08 - haha duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh!!!!! The part leading up to it was nice - dominant pedal? But that tutti figure was over the top...

2:45 - another weird trill...

3:06 - going crazy here... not sure why there is a flurry of ?sixteenths?

3:12 - definitely not harmony bach would have used

aaaaand done... well, it has Bach moments, but more often than not it doesn't... I want to say that maybe some of the harmonic motion is what Bach might have done? But there are places where the modulation is too sudden and just not prepared for in enough time. There are moments where I'm literally left wondering 'what was that?!' and I never get my answer.

Start with a simpler subject. That seems to be the entire problem - it's an unnecessarily complex subject that is made even more complicated by mistakes. If I could perhaps see the music, I might be able to be more specific - and I'd like to be, for the sake of an interesting piece.

[Fredrick zinos]

Yawn

Fredrick zinos said:

Jeff Cattie said:

45: - eh, not a strong spot

1:03 - weird - melodic fragment C B A G F E doesn't seem to work there... Eb maybe? Weirdness up until the trill, too.

1:15 - trill? on what note?! This whole section seems... OFF.

1:33 - this ceases to be counterpoint...

1:44 - weird modulation

1:53 - harmonically ambiguous

2:08 - haha duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh!!!!! The part leading up to it was nice - dominant pedal? But that tutti figure was over the top...

2:45 - another weird trill...

3:06 - going crazy here... not sure why there is a flurry of ?sixteenths?

3:12 - definitely not harmony bach would have used

aaaaand done... well, it has Bach moments, but more often than not it doesn't... I want to say that maybe some of the harmonic motion is what Bach might have done? But there are places where the modulation is too sudden and just not prepared for in enough time. There are moments where I'm literally left wondering 'what was that?!' and I never get my answer.

Start with a simpler subject. That seems to be the entire problem - it's an unnecessarily complex subject that is made even more complicated by mistakes. If I could perhaps see the music, I might be able to be more specific - and I'd like to be, for the sake of an interesting piece.

[Jeff Cattie]

'Yawn?' lol Oh jeeez - I'm sorry that's not as exciting for you as all the ridiculous praise you got. Maybe you shouldn't have been so snippy with me. I'm offering you something constructive - biased only because of my fondness for Bach's music... Honestly, I'm amazed anybody can sit through this and not wince a dozen times.

Fredrick zinos said:

Yawn
Fredrick zinos said:

Jeff Cattie said:

45: - eh, not a strong spot

1:03 - weird - melodic fragment C B A G F E doesn't seem to work there... Eb maybe? Weirdness up until the trill, too.

1:15 - trill? on what note?! This whole section seems... OFF.

1:33 - this ceases to be counterpoint...

1:44 - weird modulation

1:53 - harmonically ambiguous

2:08 - haha duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh!!!!! The part leading up to it was nice - dominant pedal? But that tutti figure was over the top...

2:45 - another weird trill...

3:06 - going crazy here... not sure why there is a flurry of ?sixteenths?

3:12 - definitely not harmony bach would have used

aaaaand done... well, it has Bach moments, but more often than not it doesn't... I want to say that maybe some of the harmonic motion is what Bach might have done? But there are places where the modulation is too sudden and just not prepared for in enough time. There are moments where I'm literally left wondering 'what was that?!' and I never get my answer.

Start with a simpler subject. That seems to be the entire problem - it's an unnecessarily complex subject that is made even more complicated by mistakes. If I could perhaps see the music, I might be able to be more specific - and I'd like to be, for the sake of an interesting piece.