Bach, Toccata and Fugue in D minor, organ

Posted on April 16th, 2010 by admin

Bach’s most famous organ piece, with a bar-graph score.

FAQ

Q: Where can I get free sheet music for this piece?
A: Sheet music for this can be found here:

http://tinyurl.com/243oyo

Q: Can I follow the person who made this video on Twitter?
A: Sure, Stephen Malinowski’s Twitter ID is: musanim

Q: Who wrote Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor?
Q: Isn’t that like asking who’s buried in Grant’s Tomb?
A: Heh-heh. A theory has recently (1981) been put forth that J. S. Bach did not write this piece. A brief summary of the supporting evidence for this theory can be read here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toccata_and_Fugue_in_D_minor#Attribution

Q: What’s wrong with synchronization?
A: I don’t know, but it appears that if you use this URL, it works better:

Q: Where can I get the mp3 of this?
A: You can download it here:

http://www.musanim.com/mp3/BachToccataAndFugueInDMinorMalinowski.mp3

Q: Where can I get the MIDI file that this was made from?
A: I’m not sure it’s exactly the same, but the closest I could find was this:

http://www.musanim.com/mid/ToccataAndFugueInDMinor.mid

Q: Hey, what happened to my question/comment?
A: Questions answered in the FAQ, and comments with nothing to do with the video (“spam”), are removed. If you posted a comment and don’t know why it’s gone, email me (stephen at musanim dot com) with “YouTube comment” in the subject line.

Q: How did you make this video?
A: You can read about it here:

http://www.musanim.com/ProductionNotes/ToccataAndFugueInDMinor.html

Q: How can I make videos like this (or at least see MIDI files this way)?
A: Check out this:

http://www.musanim.com/player/

Q: What is the BWV number for this?
A: BWV 565

Q: Where does the toccata end and the fugue begin?
A: The fugue starts at 2:51 and the toccata returns at 7:12, but between these two points, parts which are strictly fugal alternate with episodes that are more toccata-like, so it’s not 100% clear-cut (like in some other toccata/fugue pairs he wrote).

Q: What do the colors mean?
A: Each “stop” on the organ was played on a separate MIDI channel, and each MIDI channel was assigned a color.

Q: What is a fugue?
A: Here is a good introduction:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fugue

Q: Can I get a DVD with this video (or others like it)?
A: Yes:

http://www.musanim.com/mam/video.html

Q: Could you please do a MAM video of _________?
A: First, check my “to do” list:
http://www.musanim.com/all/MAMToDoLis… …
If the piece isn’t listed, read the “Could you please do a MAM video of _________?” item on my main FAQ:
http://www.musanim.com/mam/mamfaq.htm… …
and if you think I’d consider doing it, email me (stephen at musanim dot com).
Q: How can I make this kind of movie?
A: Check out this:
www.musanim.com/player/

Q: The audio/video isn’t very good; can I get the original?
A: Yes, you can get it here (you have to sign up, but then you can download it):

http://www.vimeo.com/user=musanim/clips

Q: Where can I read more about this piece?
A: Here are a couple of places:

http://www.musanim.com/pdf/ViewersGuideMAM1996.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toccata_and_Fugue_in_D_minor%2c_BWV_565

Q: Why does this piece of music remind me of horror movies?
A: Because it was used in the 1962 version of The Phantom of the Opera. Before that, it did not have that connotation. When Walt Disney and Leopold Stokowski used it in the 1940 film Fantasia, they considered it to be a purely abstract piece — “absolute music” — which brought to mind expressionistic forms and lines.
.

Duration : 0:8:34


[youtube ipzR9bhei_o]

25 Responses

  1. tamikagorman676 Says:

    huhcant seem to …
    huhcant seem to find a guy who isnt a coward

  2. LocalRailfan Says:

    Sounds like Chest …
    Sounds like Chest Fever by The Band!

  3. Silvermoon93 Says:

    Wow…it amazes me …
    Wow…it amazes me that it’s actually possible to play this piece with only two hands ;)
    … kudos to all those who can do so.

  4. trevjr Says:

    Wow there is a …
    Wow there is a mistake near the end, the inner voice goes up but the visual bar goes down. at 7:38, i hear the inner voice going up, maybe you cannot display enough voices. this is fantastic anyway, i just love watching this.

  5. eliteslayer66 Says:

    @betsunosekai …
    @betsunosekai someone say bleach?

  6. smalin Says:

    @spellinganimals I …
    @spellinganimals I do, but this performance was done with the conductor program, not on an organ (see the production notes).

  7. iliaaaaaaa Says:

    <3 #1:20
    <3 #1:20

  8. iliaaaaaaa Says:

    looks very …
    looks very diffucult to play :o

  9. spellinganimals Says:

    Do you actually …
    Do you actually play the organ?

  10. Basfarmatthijs Says:

    @smalin
    standard …

    @smalin
    standard MAC OS program? lol

  11. MadsD0S Says:

    I love Bach. And I …
    I love Bach. And I love this great way of supplying the music to my eye as well.
    Thank you!

  12. whythewar1 Says:

    2:52 is the best …
    2:52 is the best part

  13. betsunosekai Says:

    @cynicsfaith hey im …
    @cynicsfaith hey im the only other person who knows what you’re talking about here! lol XD bleach fans unite

  14. deviceslashnull Says:

    It is really …
    It is really amazing and seems to especially make sense for this work and instrument.

  15. spacedead123 Says:

    This sound like one …
    This sound like one of parts of dmc

  16. Lakerbballfan Says:

    5:15 – 5:40 is the …
    5:15 – 5:40 is the reason for living.

  17. devonbeynon Says:

    Tis a cool …
    Tis a cool animation….
    And a GREAT piece of music

  18. cynicsfaith Says:

    wow…now Bleach’s …
    wow…now Bleach’s Senna is like a case of theft…1:20

  19. KittenKiller Says:

    Stare at the video …
    Stare at the video for a while and then look at something.

  20. nxidplease Says:

    what a great piece …
    what a great piece of art

  21. Franken6tein Says:

    Very biutiful song …
    Very biutiful song !!!!

  22. chanchi789 Says:

    @peatones27

    Is …
    @peatones27

    Is also in games. I think in megaman legends I, when you fight with Burocratic model Juno.

  23. love1socket422 Says:

    awesome!!!!!! 5/5
    awesome!!!!!! 5/5

  24. zeusS201 Says:

    2:50 !
    2:50 !

  25. Ch40sW4rl0ck Says:

    @smalin you made …
    @smalin you made this, all by yourself? (not the music ofcourse) Very Impressive, to be able to write such a program

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