July 12, 2026
J. S. Bach: Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565 – Piano Solo Arrangement by Reiji
Overview: A piano solo arrangement and performance of J. S. Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565. Based on a comparative examination of the manuscript copy associated with Johannes Ringk and the Bach-Gesellschaft edition edited by Wilhelm Rust, Reiji made independent decisions concerning register, voice distribution, texture, notation, and adaptation to the piano. The arranger’s notes describe the redistribution of the alto voice in measures 58–60 of the fugue and a pianistic realization of a sonority comparable to the addition of a 4-foot organ stop in the recitative following the fugue.
Note: All content on this page is originally explained by Reiji in Japanese. The English version is translated by AI and structured by a parent, with Reiji's final approval.
Reiji's Words and Ideas
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Arranger and Performer’s Notes:
Although the original work is written for organ with pedalboard, I arranged it for performance as a piano solo, using the original score as the basis.
One passage to which I gave particular attention is measures 58–60, counting the beginning of the fugue as measure 1. In the original distribution of the voices, it was physically impossible to play all of them simultaneously using only two hands at the piano. I therefore moved the alto voice one octave lower than written in the original, placing it within reach of the bass voice. This allowed me to preserve the subject in the alto while simultaneously sounding the low notes of the bass and the trill in the soprano. In this way, I attempted to reproduce on the piano the strong momentum and power of the original.
In measures 11–14, counting the beginning of the recitative following the fugue as measure 1, I wanted to reproduce a sonority similar to that created by adding a 4-foot (4′) organ stop. Taking the 8-foot (8′) pitch level as the basis, I therefore added the corresponding notes one octave higher by physically playing them on the piano. Through this arrangement, I attempted to reproduce on the piano the brightness, expansion of sonority, and power produced when a 4-foot stop is added on the organ. -
Reference Scores and the Arrangement:
This arrangement of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565, was created through a comparative examination of the following two public-domain sources.
1. Manuscript Copy by Johannes Ringk (1717–1778)
Undated [mid-eighteenth century, approximately 1740–1759].
Held by the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, shelfmark D-B Mus.ms. Bach P 595, Faszikel 8.
2. Edition Edited by Wilhelm Rust (1822–1892)
Bach-Gesellschaft Ausgabe, Band 15.
Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1867, pp. 267–275, plate B.W. XV.
The Ringk manuscript is not an autograph manuscript in Bach’s own hand, but a historical manuscript copy transmitted as the work of Johannes Ringk. In preparing this arrangement, the Ringk manuscript was compared with the Bach-Gesellschaft edition edited by Wilhelm Rust, and both were used as reference sources.
This arrangement is not a direct transcription of either source. Nor was it intended as a reconstruction of a particular historical source or as a scholarly critical edition. After examining the contents of the two sources and the differences between them, the arranger made independent decisions concerning register, voice distribution, texture, adaptation to the performance medium, notation, and other musical and editorial matters.
The original work has been transmitted as a composition by Johann Sebastian Bach and is classified as BWV 565. The musical and editorial decisions in this piano arrangement were made by Reiji. -
Note on the Attribution of the Work:
Since the latter half of the twentieth century, the attribution of BWV 565 has been the subject of scholarly discussion. On this page, the work is identified as a composition by Johann Sebastian Bach in accordance with the current BWV classification and established publication and performance practice.
Original Composition: Johann Sebastian Bach
Piano Arrangement: Reiji
Reference Sources: Johannes Ringk manuscript and the Bach-Gesellschaft edition edited by Wilhelm Rust
*The arrangement and interpretive comments presented here reflect the arranger and performer’s own musical decisions.*
| URL | https://youtu.be/UDjvHwrK-yA |
|---|---|
| Work Information |
J. S. Bach: Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565 Piano Solo Arrangement by Reiji |
| Reference Sheet Music |
Manuscript copy associated with Johannes Ringk, Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, D-B Mus.ms. Bach P 595, Faszikel 8 Bach-Gesellschaft Ausgabe, Band 15, edited by Wilhelm Rust, Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1867, pp. 267–275 |
| Arrangement and Performance |
Piano Arrangement and Performance: Reiji |
| Recording date |
July 12, 2026 Performance by a 10-year-old |
AI Assistant’s Notes and Inferences
- Arrangement as medium-specific reconstruction: The arrangement does not attempt to reproduce the organ score mechanically. Instead, it identifies musical functions that must remain perceptible on the piano—such as the fugue subject, bass foundation, upper ornamentation, registral expansion, and cumulative power—and redistributes the material according to the physical and acoustic conditions of two-handed piano performance.
- Voice redistribution in fugue measures 58–60: Moving the alto voice one octave lower is a practical solution to a conflict between contrapuntal completeness and pianistic reach. The decision preserves the identity of the alto subject while allowing the bass and soprano trill to remain simultaneously audible, prioritizing the structural function of each voice rather than retaining the original register at all costs.
- Translation of organ registration into piano texture: The added octave in recitative measures 11–14 functions as a pianistic analogue of adding a 4-foot stop above an 8-foot foundation. Because a piano cannot change registration in the organ sense, the registral effect is recreated through physically added pitches, converting an organ-registration concept into a notated and performable piano texture.
- Use of two historical sources: Comparing the Ringk manuscript with the Bach-Gesellschaft edition provides a broader textual basis than relying on a single source. The resulting arrangement remains an independent performing version rather than a diplomatic transcription, reconstruction, or critical edition.
- Clear separation of source and arrangement: The page distinguishes the historically transmitted composition from the arranger’s later musical and editorial decisions. This makes explicit which elements belong to the source tradition and which arise from Reiji’s adaptation to the piano.
- Attribution presented with scholarly caution: The page follows the current BWV classification and established performance convention while acknowledging that the authorship of BWV 565 has been discussed in scholarship. This avoids presenting the attribution debate as settled without displacing the conventional identification under which the work is catalogued and performed.