Review

Johann Sebastian Bach
The Art of Fugue:

Arranged by Ralph Sauer


Vancouver, BC, Canada
Publisher: Cherry Classics Music
Date of Publication: 2014
URL: http://www.cherryclassics.com

Primary Genre: Brass Ensemble - 5 brass

Ralph Sauer’s complete transcription of The Art of Fugue for brass quintet has been updated and republished by Cherry Classics Music. This massive undertaking includes parts and scores to all fifteen of the fugues (Contrapunctus I through Contrapunctus XV) plus the final Chorale, Vor deinen Thron. As one can imagine, this is an incredible amount of music! Sauer’s transcription was originally published in 1978, but this updated version features cleaned up parts and scores that are easy to read. Sauer explains in the foreward, “All misprints have also been corrected, conflicts with dynamics and articulations have been resolved, and a few awkward passages have been revised.”
 
The transcriptions are extremely well crafted and fit nicely into the brass quintet setting. Sauer maintains the lines and voicing of the original while expertly passing the music among the five brass parts. There are also sections where a voice is doubled to take advantage of the full quintet sound. The fugues are all moved down a step from the original key of d minor to c minor. Sauer also gives numerous articulation and dynamic markings that help with the phrasing and balance of the continuously interweaving musical lines. Each of the fugues presents a slightly different level of difficulty and complexity, challenging yet playable by a range of ages and abilities from advanced student groups through professional ensembles. The technical demands of each individual part are not overwhelming but the independence of musical lines will provide the biggest challenge to student groups. Sauer adds cues to help with this aspect of the work. While the range of individual parts is not extreme, extended passages with limited rest, especially in the trumpet parts can present an endurance challenge to younger players.
 
This edition provides an incredible resource. It is obvious that a great deal of work went into both Sauer’s original transcription and this new edition. There are so many potential benefits of this music, both in educational and performance settings, and we are fortunate to have this resource available. It should also be noted that in addition to this complete version, the individual fugues and chorale are also available as separate pieces. Score samples are available on the Cherry Classics Music website.

-Drew Leslie
Appalachian State University