h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Fantastic.

The Goldberg Variations is a hypnotic piece; it enters the brain via the subconscious, and never leaves. I can still recall the first time I heard it; I was not listening at all analytically - and certainly the escalation of the canons (ending in an extraordinary canon in 9ths) escaped me. But the structure still shone through, and the sense of satisfying accomplishment as the last toccata moves to the quodlibet and then to the restatement of the aria was overwhelming.

If anyone thinks I am talking rubbish - well, you may well be right. This is, after all, a single piece stretching to 45 minutes or an hour (depending on which recording you listen to), and that sounds pretty daunting. But try it; I still have a soft spot for the 1955 Glen Gould recording on Sony (with a couple of magical fugues from the 48 thrown in at the end for good measure).

Just one nitpick, and one question. The quodlibet (the combination of two popular songs that you mention) is not the very last movement; that is a restatement of the aria. The quodlibet is the penultimate movement. And the question; you say that the aria, when repeated at the end, has some minor variations. I'd be grateful for details; I had always assumed that the aria was a strict da capo (and thought it was probably published like that originally, although my Henle edition does reprint it at the end).

Once again - a great bit of work (both you and Bach ...)!

Thank you, Kes... Lovely music, and fascinating background. I bet you love this music.

MLK

You would win your bet, mari-rae. It is amazing music.

Do you like it enough to carry it with you wherever you may travel? That would be nice...

MLK

Interesting you should mention that ... I haven't been travelling much recently, but when I do, yes, a CD of this suite is one of the essentials

To understand whether it's a strict da capo you have to understand the structure of the set of variations and possible intentions by Bach. The set of the 30 variations forms an 'arch' structure, with the high point at v.16, with the character of overture, and v.1 being an excellent introduction to the set, contrasting the aria, and v.30 being a perfect conclusion to the set, contrasting v.29 and is in a much more subdued and resolute mood to the others. With this arch structure in mind, the variations become cyclical. The cyclical form would be Aria - 30 Variations - Aria - 30 Variations ... and so on. To keep the continuity of the cycle the bridging aria should be strict da Capo, but, most people on listening the Goldberg Variations intend to do so once in a sitting, and so the cycle is finite, and the concluding aria can be varied slightly.

Very nicely put! The most usual variation is to apply a slower tempo when playing the Aria as the conclusion. This is an effective way of signalling the coming conclusion.