Organ Sonata in E-flat major

At a glance

• What it isthe first movement of the first of six trio sonatas for organ. It begins brightly and briskly, with no tempo marking.
• Who, when, whyBach gathered the six together in Leipzig around 1730. His early biographer Forkel wrote that they were made for the practice of his eldest son, Wilhelm Friedemann.
• What to listen forthe right and left hands trading the same theme, and the pedal walking underneath.

Listen for

• The first themethe right hand presents a bright theme, and a moment later the left hand takes it up.
• Three strandswhile the two hands' lines cross each other, the feet hold the beat in the bass. If following all three at once is hard, pick one line at a time.
• The closethe theme comes back in the home key of E-flat major and the movement ends brightly.

When it was written

In Bach's time a 'trio sonata' was usually chamber music for two high instruments with a bass accompaniment. Bach moved that texture onto a single organ. Because each hand has to play on its own keyboard, the pieces were ideal for learning to move both hands and the feet completely independently.

Forkel recorded that Bach wrote these pieces for Wilhelm Friedemann and that his son became a fine organist through them. Some movements among the six are known to be reworkings of music Bach had written earlier.