James Kennerley plays J.S. Bach's Prelude and Fugue in E Minor, BWV 548

The Prelude and Fugue in E minor (nicknamed “The Wedge”) by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). Performed live in concert in March 2023 by James Kennerley, Municipal Organist for the City of Portland, Maine. It is registered in an unashamedly Romantic style that takes advantage of the many orchestral timbres of the Kotzschmar!
Played on the mighty Kotzschmar Memorial Organ at Merrill Auditorium in Portland, first built in 1912 by Austin, enlarged in 1928, and most recently renovated by Foley-Baker in 2012-14.
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The final work in this concert, the Prelude and Fugue in E minor is nicknamed “The Wedge”. This is undoubtedly due to the wedge-shaped appearance of the fugue subject in notation form (it starts on a note and expands outwards at an even pace, resembling a hairpin or wedge). It is a substantial work, perhaps emanating from the Leipzig years, the final position that Bach held. Philipp Spitta (1841-1894), who published a two-volume biography of Bach in 1873, characterized the piece as a “two-movement symphony”. It is indeed the longest prelude-fugue combination in Bach’s output. The opening prelude is in a clear Italianate concert-ritornello form. The fugue has a sense of extraordinary power and energy, derived in part from the chromatic nature of the wedge-shaped fugue subject, creating a constant feeling of tension and release. It is the perfect partner in crime for the Kotzschmar organ!

[@sqqqrly7750]

Very nice.

[@edwardhart5466]

Bach would have been so pleased with this wonderful performance, great musicality the work just spoke and was alive with breath ,and wonderful tempo, registration thank you so much James ,from England Nr Cambridge Jesus College .