Fugue in C minor - "Der unbändiger Nachtzug"

This particular fugue, whose final version has been transposed one half step down from the original, has been the result of a rapid burst of creativity that often comes and goes in waves around this time of the year. Even though it was finished before midnight two days ago, the thought process of deciding on an extramusical title has taken a little longer than usual this time.

In the end, I have dedicated this humble work of mine to the marvellous and everlasting art of Spanish painter Francisco de Goya, in commemoration of his famous oil on canvas "The charge of the Mamluks" which, as we know, depicts the insurrection of the people of Madrid against invading Napoleonic troops in May 2nd 1808, this exact date 215 years ago. The title itself, which roughly translates as "The unrelenting night train" is meant to evoke the profuse skirmishes that took place before the Puerta del Sol as the French colonial cavalry charged against the revolting crowds, thus igniting the first instance of bloodshed in what would come to be the Spanish War of Independence.

Here's a royalty-free picture of this iconic painting among Goya's many masterpieces:

Following the continued advice of some among my audiences, who suggested relieving the density of the counterpoint at certain points within my fugues, I have finally decided to try out this method, et voilà! I honestly can only say I could not possibly be happier with the result. How stubborn I was in keeping the full weight of the contrapuntal texture throughout the vast majority of my works in spite of my dear viewers' counsel! Thankfully, the wall encircling my mind has now been breached by these new perspectives, which I will henceforth apply to upcoming future fugues of mine.

Enjoy!

Hey!  I think that is definitely a marked improvement from some of your more contrapuntally dense works!  There's brief moments when this is 4 voices - but on the whole it seems like you intended this to be a 3 voice fugue?  There are also some spots that seem impossible to play with two hands - measures 67 - 69 especially.  Great job!  I can honestly say that I enjoyed this fugue much more than your preceding work.  Thanks for sharing!

Hi Pabio,

On 5/2/2023 at 7:24 AM, Fugax Contrapunctus said:

Following the continued advice of some among my audiences, who suggested relieving the density of the counterpoint at certain points within my fugues, I have finally decided to try out this method, et voilà! I honestly can only say I could not possibly be happier with the result. How stubborn I was in keeping the full weight of the contrapuntal texture throughout the vast majority of my works in spite of my dear viewers' counsel! Thankfully, the wall encircling my mind has now been breached by these new perspectives, which I will henceforth apply to upcoming future fugues of mine.

Yea I am happy you finally try to control and reduce the density of counterpoint at certain points! You have moments with 4 voices in b.45-47 but you also have moments with only 2 voices in the episodes like b.21, 34, 38, 54 etc. This will give contrast in different passages by controlling the number of voices! Also this make moments when all the voices appear more dramatic and climactic. I hope I can share the happiness with you since I do advocate this suggestion in my reviews haha!!!

I agree with Peter some of the passages are unplayable which sometimes happen in your piece, which I often point that out. In addition to b.67-69 Peter pointed out, b.24-26 are also quite unplayable. They are passages with a pedal point which is also one of your favourite device. I know that in a harpsichord the distance between the keys will be smaller, but I am not sure if they can be played on the harpsichord with these kind of wide range intervals! Play-ability for me is crucial if you want to present the intellect of music from the transcendental world to the physical world.

Apart from all these I enjoy your work as always Pabio.

P.S. I know almost nothing of art history. I only know Goya is as revolutionary as Beethoven. Is that true?

Henry

5 hours ago, Henry Ng Tsz Kiu said:

P.S. I know almost nothing of art history. I only know Goya is as revolutionary as Beethoven. Is that true?

As always, thank you so much for your input, Henry. Regarding the transcendence of Goya's work, there are indeed many parallelisms between him and Beethoven. Both eventually developed total deafness, were extensively prolific within their respective artistic fields and loved to experiment to a degree unseen up to that point in Western artistry, in spite of which both were quite successful throughout most of their career. They were also contemporaries - to a certain extent, since Goya's birth predates that of Beethoven by roughly 25 years or so, even though he died the same year as Schubert (that is, the year following Beethoven's own passing).

In the field of pictoric arts, Goya could indeed be qualified to be as revolutionary as Beethoven, since he worked on several styles at the same time. In his later years, he produced a collection of artworks known as the Pinturas Negras (definitely worth checking out - even if they migt seem "shocking" at first) that far anticipate the vanguard artistic movements of the 20th century's first half.

I think you have reached high level of composition mastery. Your fugue is very interesting and expressive. You have made every voice bright and natural in melodic aspect. 
And excuse me please, but I didn't understand the sense of the title. Maybe owing to my poor English I don't know what is the link between this military picture and your fugue.  However it is not matter. Important is that you have written good music.
Thank you for sharing! 😃