Today we’re listening to the next two sets of Preludes and Fugues in the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 2. The keys are D sharp minor and E major, and the version is by the eminent Gustav Leonhardt, a pioneer and reference in the world of historically informed performance practice.

Leonhardt recorded the WTC in 1967, at the Kirchheim Palace near Stuttgart, Germany. The harpsichord he uses in this recording was made by Martin Skowroneck in 1962, after an original J. D. Dulcken dating from 1745.

Christophe Rousset (whom we heard before in this series) calls the D sharp minor pair “one of the monuments of Book 2”. Its key signature, with 6 sharps, is awkward and uneasy. The prelude and fugue are similar in character, both in 4/4 tempo, the prelude in 2 voices and the long, severe fugue in 4. Leonhardt chooses not to take the repeats in the prelude.

The E major set brings back some levity. The 3-voice prelude has a pastoral character, with frequent use of sustained notes which even if inaudible, do provide airiness and resonance. Another distinctive feature are the pedal tones on eighth notes in octaves under the more quickly moving upper voices. The 4-part fugue is another example of “stile antico”, with a theme that incorporates dactyls (long-short-short figures) which project vitality and movement.