Bach-Busoni Editions
Encyclopedia
The Bach-Busoni Editions are a series of publications by the Italian pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...

-composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

 Ferruccio Busoni
Ferruccio Busoni
Ferruccio Busoni was an Italian composer, pianist, editor, writer, piano and composition teacher, and conductor.-Biography:...

 (1866-1924) containing primarily piano transcriptions of keyboard music by Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...

. They also include performance suggestions, practice exercises, musical analysis, an essay on the art of transcribing Bach's organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...

 music for piano, an analysis of the fugue
Fugue
In music, a fugue is a compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject that is introduced at the beginning in imitation and recurs frequently in the course of the composition....

 from Beethoven's 'Hammerklavier'
Piano Sonata No. 29 (Beethoven)
Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 29 in B flat major, Op. 106 is a piano sonata widely considered to be one of the most important works of the composer's third period and among one of the great piano sonatas...

 sonata, and other related material. The later editions also include free adaptations and original compositions by Busoni which are based on the music of Bach.

Busoni issued his Bach editions over a nearly 30-year span in two collections: the 25-volume Busoni Ausgabe (Joh. Seb. Bach Klavierwerke) and the Bach-Busoni Collected Edition (Bach-Busoni Gesammelte Ausgabe), which was first issued in 6 volumes in 1916, and subsequently in 7 volumes in 1920. A small collection of selected excerpts with transcriptions of organ and violin music was also published separately in 1916 as Sechs Tonstücke (Six Tone Pieces).

Busoni and Bach

In 1870 Busoni began learning to play the piano while the family was living in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, shortly before his fourth birthday. His mother, Anna Weiß-Busoni, a well-regarded professional pianist, was his teacher. Not long afterward, the family returned to Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...

, and his father, Ferdinando, a professional clarinetist, went on tour. Early in 1873, upon returning to Trieste, his father took charge of Ferruccio's musical education, including instruction in composition as well as piano. "I have to thank my father for the good fortune that he kept me strictly to the study of Bach in my childhood," Busoni wrote in the epilogue to the Collected Edition,
and that in a country in which the master was rated little higher than a Carl Czerny
Carl Czerny
Carl Czerny was an Austrian pianist, composer and teacher. He is best remembered today for his books of études for the piano. Czerny's music was profoundly influenced by his teachers, Muzio Clementi, Johann Nepomuk Hummel, Antonio Salieri and Ludwig van Beethoven.-Early life:Carl Czerny was born...

. My father was a simple virtuoso on the clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...

, who liked to play fantasias
Fantasia (music)
The fantasia is a musical composition with its roots in the art of improvisation. Because of this, it seldom approximates the textbook rules of any strict musical form ....

 on Il Trovatore
Il trovatore
Il trovatore is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play El Trovador by Antonio García Gutiérrez. Cammarano died in mid-1852 before completing the libretto...

and the Carnival of Venice
Carnival of Venice (song)
The Carnival of Venice, is a folk tune popularly associated with the words "My hat, it has three corners." A series of theme and variations have been written for solo trumpet, as "show off" pieces that contain virtuosic displays of double and triple tonguing, and fast tempos.Many variations on the...

; he was a man of incomplete musical education, an Italian and a cultivator of the bel canto
Bel canto
Bel canto , along with a number of similar constructions , is an Italian opera term...

. How did such a man in his ambition for his son's career come to hit upon the very thing that was right? I can only compare it to a mysterious revelation. In this way he educated me to be a "German" musician and showed me the path that I never entirely deserted, though at the same time I never cast off the Latin
Latins
"Latins" refers to different groups of people and the meaning of the word changes for where and when it is used.The original Latins were an Italian tribe inhabiting central and south-central Italy. Through conquest by their most populous city-state, Rome, the original Latins culturally "Romanized"...

 qualities given me by nature.


In May 1888, Busoni and his pupil Frau Kathi Petri, Egon Petri
Egon Petri
Egon Petri was a classical pianist.-Biography:Petri's family was Dutch and he was born a Dutch citizen, but he was born in Hanover in Germany and was brought up in Dresden. His father was a professional violinist who taught his son that instrument. Petri played in the Dresden Court Orchestra and...

's mother, attended a performance of the Prelude and Fugue in D major at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig. She said to him, "You ought to arrange that for pianoforte." A week later he played it for her. He had not even written it down yet, but it was the first of his great transcriptions of Bach organ works (BV B 20), and he dedicated it to Kathi Petri. According to Busoni's biographer Edward J. Dent: "This was not merely the beginning of the transcriptions, what was of far deeper import, it was the beginning of that style of pianoforte touch and technique which was entirely the creation of Ferruccio Busoni."

By September Busoni had taken a position as piano teacher at the Musikinstitut in Helsinki
Sibelius Academy
The Sibelius Academy is a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It also has an adult education centre in Järvenpää and a training centre in Seinäjoki. The Academy is the only music university in Finland. It is among the biggest European music universities...

. In a letter to Henri and Kathi Petri, Busoni wrote "I spoke with my 'superior', Director Wegelius
Martin Wegelius
Martin Wegelius was a Finnish composer and musicologist, primarily remembered as the founder, in 1882, of the Helsinki Music Institute, now known as the Sibelius Academy.Wegelius studied in Leipzig, Vienna and Munich...

, about methods of tuition. I asked if I should adhere to a programme, a specific method or any particular educational materials. – 'Actually we have no such things but, well – (after reflecting at some length) – one could perhaps take the Inventions
2 and 3 Part Inventions
2 and 3 Part Inventions is a ballet made by New York City Ballet balletmaster Jerome Robbins on students at its affiliated school, the School of American Ballet, to Bach's Inventions and Sinfonias, BWV 772–801, . The premiere took place on Saturday, June 4th, 1994, at the Juilliard Theater,...

 of Bach as a starting point." In fact, it was with an instructive edition of Bach's Two- and Three-part Inventions (BV B 23), finished in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...

 in 1891 and dedicated to the Helsinki Musikinstitut, that Busoni began his lifelong pursuit of publishing and performing the keyboard works of Bach.

Bearbeitung vs. Übertragung

Within the context of his Bach Editions, Busoni made an interesting distinction between the German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....

 terms Bearbeitung (adaptation, transcription, or arrangement
Transcription (music)
In music, transcription can mean notating a piece or a sound which was previously unnotated, as, for example, an improvised jazz solo. Further examples include ethnomusicological notation of oral traditions of folk music, such as Béla Bartók's and Ralph Vaughan Williams' collections of the national...

) and Übertragung (transcription). Since Bearbeitung is the more general term, it was also sometimes used instead of Übertragung.

He most often used the term Bearbeitung for transcriptions of music originally written for an instrument in which the tone is produced by plucking or striking a string, e.g., harpsichord
Harpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...

, clavichord
Clavichord
The clavichord is a European stringed keyboard instrument known from the late Medieval, through the Renaissance, Baroque and Classical eras. Historically, it was widely used as a practice instrument and as an aid to composition, not being loud enough for larger performances. The clavichord produces...

, or lute
Lute
Lute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back, or more specifically to an instrument from the family of European lutes....

. With such instruments the tone is loudest initially and then dies away rapidly. This property has an effect on the manner of composition for these instruments. Since a piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 produces tones in an analogous manner, by the striking of the string with a felt covered hammer, the adaptation of music written for such instruments to piano often requires very little, if any, alteration.

The term Übertragung was usually reserved for the transcription of music written for instruments which produce continuous tones, for example, the organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...

 or violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....

. Pieces written for these instruments can require more alterations to preserve the original intent or spirit of the music. The piano, when compared to the harpsichord, clavichord, or lute, presented technical changes (e.g., multiple steel strings for a given pitch, greater tension on the strings, larger sound board, more effective transfer of energy to the sound board) which allowed tones to be played more loudly and be sustained for a longer time. The damper pedal
Sustain pedal
A sustain pedal or sustaining pedal is the most commonly used pedal in a modern piano. It is typically the rightmost of two or three pedals. When pressed, the sustain pedal "sustains" all the damped strings on the piano by moving all the dampers away from the strings and allowing them to vibrate...

, which enables other strings in the instrument to vibrate in sympathy
Sympathetic resonance
Sympathetic resonance is a harmonic phenomenon wherein a formerly passive string or vibratory body responds to external vibrations to which it has a harmonic likeness. The classic example is demonstrated with two similar tuning-forks of which one is mounted on a wooden box. If the other one is...

 with the played string, provided the possibility of further augmentation and enrichment of the sound. Thus the piano represented an instrument on which it was possible to play transcriptions of such Tonstücke [tone pieces] more effectively. (The German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....

 term Tonstück is typically meant less specifically and translated simply as "piece of music.")

Essay on the Transcription of Bach's Organ Works

The organ, because of the full tone and sometimes massive sound, as in, for example, Toccata and Fugue in D minor
Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565
The Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565, is a piece of organ music attributed to Johann Sebastian Bach. It is one of the most famous works in the organ repertoire, and has been used in a variety of popular media ranging from film, video games, to rock music, and ringtones...

, and, in addition, the use of the feet with the pedalboard, presents a particular challenge in piano transcription. Busoni wrote a 36-page essay "On the Transcription of Bach's Organ Works for the Pianoforte" which appeared as the First Appendix to Volume I of the Klavierwerke, originally published in 1894. Topics covered include (1) doublings
Doubling
Doubling may refer to:*in math:**multiplication by 2**doubling the cube, a geometric problem**doubling time, the period of time required for a quantity to double in size or value**doubling map**period-doubling bifurcation***in music:...

: simple doubling of the pedal-part (five types), simple doubling of the manual
Manual (music)
A manual is a keyboard designed to be played with the hands on a pipe organ, harpsichord, clavichord, electronic organ, or synthesizer. The term "manual" is used with regard to any hand keyboard on these instruments to distinguish it from the pedalboard, which is a keyboard that the organist plays...

-parts, doubling in the octave of all pedal- and manual-parts, tripling in octaves; (2) registration
Registration (organ)
Registration is the technique of choosing and combining the stops of a pipe organ in order to produce a particular sound. Registration can also refer to a particular combination of stops...

; (3) additions, omissions, liberties; (4) use of the piano-pedals: the damper-pedal
Sustain pedal
A sustain pedal or sustaining pedal is the most commonly used pedal in a modern piano. It is typically the rightmost of two or three pedals. When pressed, the sustain pedal "sustains" all the damped strings on the piano by moving all the dampers away from the strings and allowing them to vibrate...

 (loud pedal), the soft pedal
Soft pedal
The soft pedal is one of the standard pedals on a piano, generally placed leftmost among the pedals. On a grand piano this pedal shifts the whole action including the keyboard slightly to the right, so that hammers which normally strike all three of the strings for a note strike only two of them....

, the sustaining-pedal; interpretation (styles of playing); and supplementary: arrangements for two pianos and free adaptations. Busoni asserts at the outset that he "regards the interpretation of Bach's organ pieces on the pianoforte as essential to a complete study of Bach." A typical Busoni remark appears as a footnote: "Musical commoners still delight in decrying modern virtuosi as spoilers of the classics; and yet Liszt
Liszt
Liszt is a Hungarian surname. Notable persons with that surname include:* Franz Liszt , Hungarian composer and pianist* Adam Liszt , father of Franz Liszt* Anna Liszt , mother of Franz Liszt...

 and his pupils (Bülow
Hans von Bülow
Hans Guido Freiherr von Bülow was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. He was one of the most famous conductors of the 19th century, and his activity was critical for establishing the successes of several major composers of the time, including Richard...

, Tausig
Carl Tausig
Carl Tausig was a Polish virtuoso pianist, arranger and composer.-Life:Tausig was born in Warsaw to Jewish parents and received his first piano lessons from his father, pianist and composer Aloys Tausig, a student of Sigismond Thalberg. His father introduced him to Franz Liszt in Weimar at the...

) have done things for spreading a general understanding for Bach and Beethoven beside which all theoretico-practical pedantry seems bungling, and all brow-puckering cogitations of stiffly solemn professors unfruitful."

Busoni's transcription of the Toccata and Fugue in D minor

The Tausig
Carl Tausig
Carl Tausig was a Polish virtuoso pianist, arranger and composer.-Life:Tausig was born in Warsaw to Jewish parents and received his first piano lessons from his father, pianist and composer Aloys Tausig, a student of Sigismond Thalberg. His father introduced him to Franz Liszt in Weimar at the...

 transcription of Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor (BWV 565) (score) is well known and sometimes still performed, but the Busoni version (score) over time has proved more popular. According to Hugo Leichtentritt
Hugo Leichtentritt
Hugo Leichtentritt was a German-Jewish musicologist and composer who spent much of his life in the USA. Composer Erich Walter Sternberg was one of his pupils.-Literary works:*R...

, Busoni's "building of the climaxes is more monumental, in simple lines, more thoughtful and much more effective than Tausig's somewhat arbitrary rise and fall...." Moreover, Busoni carefully avoids arpeggios, a technique used on piano, but not on organ. As the composer and musicologist Larry Sitsky
Larry Sitsky
Lazar Sitsky AM, usually referred to as Larry Sitsky, born 10 September 1934, is an Australian composer, pianist, and music educator and scholar...

 says, "his whole method of doubling, registration (octave placement on the keyboard), pedal, and pianistic distribution is superior to Tausig's."

Busoni-Ausgabe (Klavierwerke) in 25 volumes (BA)

Joh. Seb. Bach. Klavierwerke unter Mitwirkung von Egon Petri
Egon Petri
Egon Petri was a classical pianist.-Biography:Petri's family was Dutch and he was born a Dutch citizen, but he was born in Hanover in Germany and was brought up in Dresden. His father was a professional violinist who taught his son that instrument. Petri played in the Dresden Court Orchestra and...

 und Bruno Mugellini. Herausgegeben von Ferruccio Busoni.
[Joh. Seb. Bach Keyboard works in collaboration with Egon Petri and Bruno Mugellini. Edited by Ferruccio Busoni.]
Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel; 1894-1923; cat. nos. 4301-4325; 25 volumes

Notes:
1) The 25 volumes were issued over a nearly 30-year span. They include adaptations and transcriptions only.
2) Although the idea of the scheme was Busoni's, and his name appears on the cover of all 25 volumes, he actually edited only 1-5, 14-16, and 18; Egon Petri and Bruno Mugellini split the remainder between them.
3) The Bach BWV and Busoni BV B catalog numbers in parenthesis are not part of the original title and are provided for reference only.

Volumes:

I. Das Wohltemperierte Klavier. I. Teil [The Well-Tempered Clavier. Part I] (BV B 25, part 1) (scores in English and German)
Ed. by Busoni; Copyright 1894; cat. no. EB 4301; plate no. 27 451 (206 pages)
Book I: Nos. 1-8 (BWV 846-853); cat. no. 4301a
Book II: Nos. 9-16 (BWV 854-861); cat. no. 4301b
Book III: Nos. 17-24 (BWV 862-869); cat. no. 4301c
Book IV: Appendices; cat. no. 4301d
App. I: On the Transcription of Bach's Organ Works for the Piano (score)
App. II: Transcription of Organ Prelude and Fugue in E minor, BWV 533 (with Bach original also shown) (BV B 26) (score)
App. III: Analytical exposition of the fugue from Beethoven's Sonata, op. 106 (score)
App. IV: Fuge beigegebenen "Fughetta" geht in Kellners Abschrift das folgende Stück voraus: Praeludium
Reprint: Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, n.d. [ca. 1982], cat. nos. 6860-6863, plate no. 27 451 (Sitsky)


II. Das Wohltemperierte Klavier. II. Teil [The Well-Tempered Clavier. Part II] (BV B 25, part 2) (score in German)
Ed. by Busoni; Copyright 1916; cat. no. EB 4302; plate no. 27 452 (217 pages)
Book I: Nos. 1-7 (BWV 870-876); cat. no. 4302a
Book II: Nos. 8-13 (BWV 877–882); cat. no. 4302b
Book III: Nos. 14-19 (BWV 883–888); cat. no. 4302c
Book IV: Nos. 20-24 (BWV 889–893); cat. no. 4302d
Reprint: Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, n.d. [ca. 1982], cat. nos. EB 8276-8279, plate no. 27 452 (Sitsky)


III. 18 kleine Präludien, Fughetta [18 Short Preludes, Fughetta] (BV B 32)
4 Duette [4 Duets] (BV B 33)
Ed. by Busoni; Copyright 1916; cat. no. EB 4303; plate no. 27 453 (47 pages)
Reprint: Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1985 (Roberge)


IV. Zweistimmige Inventionen [Two-part Inventions] (BWV 772-786) (BV B 23, part 1)
Ed. by Busoni; Issued 1914; cat. no. EB 4304; plate no. 19 274 (47 pages)


V. Dreistimmige Inventionen [Three-part Inventions] (BWV 787-801) (BV B 23, part 2)
Ed. by Busoni; Issued 1914; cat. no. EB 4305; plate no. 19 275 (39 pages)


VI. Französische Suiten 1-6 [French Suites 1-6] (BWV 812-817)
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1918; cat. no. EB 4306


VII. Englische Suiten 1-3 [English Suites 1-3] (BWV 806-808)
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1916; cat. no. EB 4307


VIII. Englische Suiten 4-6 [English Suites 4-6] (BWV 809-811)
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1917; cat. no. EB 4308


IX. Partiten 1-3 [Partitas 1-3] (BWV 825-827)
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1918; cat. no. EB 4309


X. Partiten 4-6 [Partitas 4-6] (BWV 828-830)
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1923; cat. no. EB 4310

XI. Konzerte nach B. Marcello, G. Ph. Telemann, A. Vivaldi u. a. Nr. 1-8
[Concerti after B. Marcello, G. Ph. Telemann, A. Vivaldi etc. Nos. 1-8]
Ed. by Mugellini; Issued 1915; cat. no. EB 4311

XII. Konzerte Nr. 9-16 [Concerti Nos. 9-16]
Ed. by Mugellini; Issued 1915; cat. no. EB 4312


XIII. Italienisches Konzert [Italian Concerto] (BWV 971);
Partita H moll [Partita in B minor] (BWV 1002)
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1918; cat. no. EB 4313


XIV. [Various works for clavichord, keyboard, and lute]
1) Chromatische Fantasie und Fuge [Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue], for clavichord (BWV 903) (BV B 31) (score)
2) Capriccio über die Abreise des vielgeliebten Bruders [Capriccio on the Departure of His Beloved Brother], for keyboard (BWV 992) (BV B 34) (score)
3) Fantasia, Adagio and Fuge [Fantasy, Adagio, and Fugue], for clavichord (BWV 906, 968) (BV B 37) (score)
4) Präludium, Fuge und Allegro [Prelude, Fugue, and Allegro], for lute (BWV 998) (BV B 36) (score)
Ed. by Busoni; Copyright 1915; cat. no. 4314; plate no. 27 460 (81 pages)
Reprint: Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1982 (Roberge)


XV. Aria mit 30 Veränderungen
Goldberg Variations
The Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, is a work for harpsichord by Johann Sebastian Bach, consisting of an aria and a set of 30 variations. First published in 1741, the work is considered to be one of the most important examples of variation form...

 [Aria with 30 variations] "Goldberg Variations," for harpsichord (BWV 988) (BV B 35) (score)
Ed by Busoni; Copyright 1915; cat. no. 4315; plate no. 27 461
Reprint: Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1988 (Roberge)


XVI. Variationswerke [Works with variations]
1) Fantasie, Fuge, Andante und Scherzo [Fantasy, Fugue, Andante and Scherzo] (BWV 905, 969, 844) (BV B 42) (score)
2) Sarabande con partite [Sarabande with partitas] (BWV 990) (BV B 43) (score)
3) Aria variata alla maniera italiana [Air with variations in the Italian style] (BWV 989) (BV B 44) (score)
Ed. by Busoni; Copyright 1921; cat. no. EB 4316; plate no. 27 462 (35 pages)
Reprint: Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1982 (Roberge)


XVII. Tokkaten [Toccatas]
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1922; cat. no. EB 4317


XVIII. [Toccatas, Fantasia and Fugue in A minor, for clavichord]
1) Drei Tokkaten u. Fugen [Three Toccatas and Fugues], for clavichord (BWV 914-916) (BV B 39);
2) Fantasie und Fuge a moll [Fantasia and Fugue in A minor], for clavichord (BWV 904) (BV B 41)
Ed. by Busoni; Copyright 1920 and 1918; cat. no. EB 4318; plate nos. 27 464 and 27 972 (44 pages)
Reprint: Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1981 (Roberge)

XIX. Präludien und Fugen [Preludes and Fugues]
Ed. by Mugellini; Issued 1917; cat. no. 4319

XX. Präludien, Fughetten, Fugen [Preludes, Fughetti, Fugues]
Ed. by Mugellini; Issued 1917; cat. no. 4320

XXI. Fugen [Fugues]
Ed. by Mugellini; Issued 1917; cat. no. 4321

XXII. Fantasien (Präludien) und Fugen [Fantasies (Pleludes) and Fugues]
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1922; cat. no. 4322

XXIII. Suiten [Suites]
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1923; cat. no. 4323

XXIV. Suiten und 2 Sonaten [Suites and 2 Sonatas]
Ed. by Mugellini; Issued 1921; cat. no. 4324

XXV. 3 Sonaten [3 Sonatas];
Konzert und Fuge C moll [Concerto and Fugue in C minor] (BWV 909);
Capriccio E dur [Capriccio in E major] (BWV 993);
3 Menuette [3 Menuets]
Ed. by Petri; Issued 1923; cat. no. 4325

•Ref: Kindermann, p. 464-5; Sitsky, pp. 177-179; Roberge, pp. x, 50-53.

Sechs Tonstücke

Joh. Seb. Bach. Sechs Tonstücke. Klavier-Übertragung von Ferruccio Busoni. Neue durchgesehene Ausgabe
[Joh. Seb. Bach. Six Tone Pieces. Piano transcriptions by Ferruccio Busoni. New revised edition]
Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel; Copyright 1902; cat. no. V.A. 1916 (49 pages)

Note: Selected transcriptions of organ and violin works.
Contents:
1) Präludium und Fuge (D-Dur) für die Orgel. (BWV 532) Zum Konzertvorträge für Pianoforte bearbeitet. (BV B 20) (score)
[Prelude and Fugue in D major for organ. Transcribed for concert performance.]

2) Vier Orgelchoralvorspiele [Four Chorale Preludes for Organ] (BV B 27) (score)
BWV 645: Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme [Awake, the Voice commands.]
BWV 615: In dir ist Freude [In Thee is joy]
BWV 639: Ich ruf' zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ [I call to Thee, Lord Jesus Christ]
BWV 734: Nun freut euch, lieben Christen [Rejoice, beloved Christians]

3) Chaconne for Violine allein. [Chaconne for violin solo] [from Partita II for Violin, BWV 1004] (BV B 24) (score)
•Ref: Kindermann, p. 466; Roberge, pp. x, 49-51.

BB6: in 6 volumes (1916)

Bach-Busoni. Gesammelte Ausgabe. Bearbeitungen, Übertragungen, Studien und Kompositionen für Pianoforte nach Johann Sebastian Bach von Ferruccio Busoni. Vollständige und vervollkommnete Ausgabe.
[Bach-Busoni. Collected Edition. Adaptations, Transcriptions, Studies, and Compositions for Pianoforte after Johann Sebastian Bach by Ferruccio Busoni. Complete and improved edition.]
Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel; 1916; cat. nos. BB I – BB VI; 6 volumes

Note: In addition to adaptations and transcriptions of pieces by Bach, the set includes original compositions by Busoni, which are paraphrases or free adaptations of works by Bach.

Volumes:
I. Bearbeitungen I, Lehrstücke [Adaptations, I. Study Pieces]
1) Widmung [Dedication]
[Widmung is a complete miniature combining the B-A-C-H
BACH motif
In music, the BACH motif is the motif, a succession of notes important or characteristic to a piece, B flat, A, C, B natural. In German musical nomenclature, in which the note B natural is written as H and the B flat as B, it forms Johann Sebastian Bach's family name...

 signature motif with the Fugue in C major (BWV 846) from Book I of the Well-Tempered Clavier.]
2) 18 Kleine Präludien, Fughetta [18 Short Preludes, Fughetta], for clavichord (except BWV 999, for lute) (BV B 32)
3) 15 zweistimmige Inventionen [15 Two-part Inventions], for harpsichord (BWV 772-786) (BV B 23, part 1)
4) 15 dreistimmige Inventionen [15 Three-part Inventions], for harpsichord BWV 787-801) (BV B 23, part 2)
5) 4 Duette [4 Duets], for harpsichord (BWV 802-805) (BV B 33)
6) Präludium, Fuge und Allegro Es Dur [Prelude, Fugue, and Allegro in E-flat major], for lute (BWV 998) (BV B 36)

II. Bearbeitungen II, Meisterstücke [Adaptations, II. Masterpieces]
1) Chromatische Fantasie und Fuge [Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue], for clavichord (BWV 903) (BV B 31)
2) Klavierkonzert, D Moll [Harpsichord Concerto in D minor] (BWV 1052) (tr. for two pianos) (BV B 30)
3) Aria mit 30 Veränderungen
Goldberg Variations
The Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, is a work for harpsichord by Johann Sebastian Bach, consisting of an aria and a set of 30 variations. First published in 1741, the work is considered to be one of the most important examples of variation form...

 [Aria with 30 variations] "Goldberg Variations," for harpsichord (BWV 988), BV B 35)

III. Übertragungen [Transcriptions]
1) Präludium und Fuge für die Orgel, D Dur. [Prelude and Fugue for Organ in D major] (BWV 532) (BV B 20)
2) Präludium und Fuge für die Orgel, Es Dur. [Prelude and Fugue for Organ in E-flat major] (BWV 552) (BV B 22)
3) Orgel-Tokkata, D Moll
Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565
The Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565, is a piece of organ music attributed to Johann Sebastian Bach. It is one of the most famous works in the organ repertoire, and has been used in a variety of popular media ranging from film, video games, to rock music, and ringtones...

 [Toccata for Organ in D minor] (BWV 565) (BV B 29)
4) Orgel-Tokkata, C Dur
Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C major, BWV 564
Toccata, Adagio, and Fugue in C major is an organ composition by Johann Sebastian Bach. Similar to most other organ works by Bach, the autograph score does not survive. The earliest manuscript copies were probably made in 1719–1727...

 [Toccata for Organ in C major] (BWV 564) (BV B 29)
5) Zehn Orgel-Choral-Vorspiele [Ten Chorale Preludes for Organ] (BV B 27)
6) Chaconne für Violine [Chaconne for Violin] (from BWV 1004) (BV B 24)

IV. Kompositionen und Nachdichtungen [Compositions and Free Adaptations]
1) Fantasia [nach Johann Sebastian Bach] (BV 253) (score)
2) Preludio, Fuga e Fuga figurata [Prelude, Fugue and Invented Fugue] (BV 254, no. 2) (score)
3) Capriccio, B Dur, über die Abreise [Capriccio on the Departure], for keyboard (BV B 34)
4) Fantasie, Adagio und Fuge, C Moll [Fantasy, Adagio, and Fugue in C minor] (BV B 37)
5) Choral-Vorspiel nebst Fuge über ein Bachsches Fragment [Chorale Prelude and Fugue on a Fragment by Bach] (Fantasia contrappuntistica, edizione minore) (BV 256a) (score)
6) Fantasia contrappuntistica [Contrapuntal Fantasy] (edizione definitiva) (BV 256) (score)

V. Das Wohltemperierte Klavier, I [The Well-Tempered Clavier, I] (BV B 25, part 1)
[For details see Busoni-Ausgabe, Vol. 1.]

VI. Das Wohltemperierte Klavier, II [The Well-Tempered Clavier, II] (BV B 25, part 2)
[For details see Busoni-Ausgabe, Vol. 2.]

•Ref: Kindermann, p. 465-6; Sitsky, p. 179; Roberge, pp. x, 49-52.

BB7: in 7 volumes (1920)

Bearbeitungen, Übertragungen, Studien und Kompositionen für Pianoforte nach Johann Sebastian Bach von Ferruccio Busoni. Vollständige und vervollkommnete Ausgabe.
[Adaptations, Transcriptions, Studies, and Compositions for Pianoforte after Johann Sebastian Bach by Ferruccio Busoni. Complete and improved edition.]
Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel; 1920; cat. nos. BB I – BB VII; 7 volumes

Volumes:
I. to VI. (The same as for BB6)

VII. Bearbeitungen, Übertragungen, Studien und Kompositionen. [Adaptations, Transcriptions, Studies, and Compositions.]

Bearbeitungen [Adaptations]:
1) Drei Tokkaten in e-Moll, g-Moll und G-Dur [Three Toccatas in E minor, G minor and G major] (BV B 39)
2) Fantasie und Fuge a moll [Fantasia and Fugue in A minor] (BV B 41)
3) Fantasie, Fuge, Andante und Scherzo [Fantasy, Fugue, Andante and Scherzo] (BV B 42)

Übertragungen [Transcriptions]:
4) Chromatische Fantasie und Fuge für Violoncell und Klavier übertragen (BV B 38)
[Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue transcribed for cello and piano]

Kompositionen und Nachdichtungen [Compositions and Free Adaptations]:
5) Improvisation über das Bachsche Chorallied "Wie wohl ist mir, o Freund der Seele"" für zwei Klaviere (BV 271)
[Improvisation on the Bach chorale "How good I feel, O friend of the soul"]
6) Kanonische Variationen und Fuge (über das Thema Friedrich des Großen) aus J. S. Bach's "Musikalisches Opfer
The Musical Offering
The Musical Offering , BWV 1079, is a collection of canons and fugues and other pieces of music by Johann Sebastian Bach, all based on a single musical theme given to him by Frederick II of Prussia , to whom they are dedicated...

" gezogen und für Klavier dargestellt. (BV B 40)
[Canonic Variations and Fugue (on a theme by Frederic the Great) extracted from the "Musical Offering" and prepared for piano]
7) Sonatina brevis. In Signo Joannis Sebastiani Magni. In freier Nachdichtung von Bachs Kleiner Fantasie und Fuge d-Moll. (BV 280)
[Brief sonatina. In the style of Johann Sebastian the Great. In free adaption of Bach's Little Fantasy and Fugue in D minor.]

Anhang [Appendix]:
8) Versuch einer organischen Klavier-Notenschrift. [Attempt at an organic piano notation.]

•Ref: Kindermann, p. 465-6; Sitsky, pp. 179-180; Roberge, pp. x, 38, 40, 49-52.

Klavierübung: Volume 8 (1925)

Although it is not concerned specifically with the music of Bach, the second collected edition of Busoni's Klavierübung was published by Breitkopf & Härtel
Breitkopf & Härtel
Breitkopf & Härtel is the world's oldest music publishing house. The firm was founded in 1719 in Leipzig by Bernhard Christoph Breitkopf . The catalogue currently contains over 1000 composers, 8000 works and 15,000 music editions or books on music. The name "Härtel" was added when Gottfried...

 posthumously (in 1925) as volume 8 of this series (cat. no. F.B. VIII).

Reprints by other publishers

The music of the Bach-Busoni editions is now in the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...

 and has been selectively reissued by other publishers:

Masters Music editions

The following items have been published by Masters Music Publications:
Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue, BWV 903 (tr. for cello & piano by Busoni), [1994], cat. no. M2346 (BV B 38)
Collected Keyboard Works (ed. Busoni, Petri)
Volumes:
1. English Suites Nos. 1-3, BWV 806-808 [ed. Petri], 1994, cat. no. M2139 [from BA7]
2. English Suites Nos. 4-6, BWV 809-811 [ed. Petri], 1994, cat. no. M2221 [from BA8]
3. Six French Suites, BWV 812-817 [ed. Petri], 1991, cat. no. M1590 [from BA6]
4. Goldberg Variations, BWV 988 [ed. Busoni], [198-? or 1992?], cat. no. M1945 (BV B 35) [from BA15]
5. Clavier-Übung II: Italian Concerto, BWV 971 [ed. Petri]; Partita in B minor, BWV 831 [ed. Petri], [1991?], cat. no. M1591 [from BA18]
6. Clavier-Ubung I: Partiten Nos. 1-3, BWV 825-827 [ed. Petri], 1990, cat. no. M1592 [from BA9]
7. Clavier-Ubung I: Partiten Nos. 4-6, BWV 828-830 [ed. Petri], 1991, cat. no. M1593 [from BA10]
8. Smaller Works; Book 1 [ed. Busoni], 1992, cat. no. M1973 [from BA16]
a) Fantasy, Fugue, Andante and Scherzo (BV B 42)
i) Fantasia und Fuga in D minor, BVW 905 [spurious]
ii) Andante in G minor, BWV 969 [spurious]
iii) Scherzo in D minor, BWV 844 [actual composer: W.F. Bach]
b) Sarabande con Partite in C major, BWV 990 [spurious] (BV B 43)
c) Aria Variata alla Maniera Italiana, BWV 989 (BV B 44)
9. Smaller Works, Book 2: Inventions, BWV 772-801 [ed. Busoni], 1991, cat. no. M1589 (BV B 23) [from BA4 and BA5]
Organ Chorale-Preludes (tr. Busoni), [1990?], cat. no. M1195 (BV B 27)
Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004: Chaconne (tr. Busoni), [1989], cat. no. 1256 (BV B 24)
Prelude and Fugue in D major, BWV 532 (tr. Busoni), [1989], cat. no. M1298 (BV B 20)
Prelude and Fugue in E-flat major 'St. Anne', BWV 552, [1989], cat. no. M1196 (BV B 36)
Toccata in D minor, BWV 565, [1989], cat. no. M1277 (BV B 29)
Toccata in C major, BWV 564, [1989], cat. no. M1299 (BV B 29)
Two Contrapuntal Studies after J.S. Bach, [ca. 1999], cat. no. M3119
1) Fantasy and Fugue in A minor. BWV 904 (BV B 41)
2) Canonic Variations and Fugue from the "Musical Offering," BWV 1079 (BV B 40)

Dover edition

Toccata and Fugue in D minor and the Other Bach Transcriptions for Solo Piano
Dover Publications
Dover Publications
Dover Publications is an American book publisher founded in 1941 by Hayward Cirker and his wife, Blanche. It publishes primarily reissues, books no longer published by their original publishers. These are often, but not always, books in the public domain. The original published editions may be...

, 1996, ISBN 0486290506
Note: Includes the same items as Vol III of the BB6. However, the actual sources are other publications of the same pieces as noted below.
1) Prelude and Fugue in D Major, BWV 532 [from Breitkopf & Härtel, EB 3355] (BV B 20)
2) Prelude and Fugue in E-flat Major ("St. Anne"), BWV 552 [from "unidentified authoritative edition, n.d."] (BV B 36)
3) Toccata in C Major (Prelude, Intermezzo and Fugue), BWV 564 [from Vol 1628 of Schirmer's Library of Musical Classics by G. Schirmer, Inc.
G. Schirmer
G. Schirmer Inc. is an American classical music publishing company based in New York City, founded in 1861. It publishes sheet music for sale and rental, and represents some well-known European music publishers in North America, such as the Italian Ricordi, Music Sales Affiliates ChesterNovello,...

, "published 1942."] (BV B 29)
4) Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565 [from Breitkopf & Härtel, EB 1372] (BV B 29)
5) Chaconne in D Minor (from Partita II for Violin, BWV 1004) [from Breitkopf & Härtel, EB 2334] (BV B 24)
6) Ten Chorale-Preludes [from Breitkopf & Härtel, EB 2459 (Nos. 1-5) and EB 2460 (Nos. 6-9)] (BV B 27)

See also

  • Catalog of adaptations by Ferruccio Busoni
    Catalog of adaptations by Ferruccio Busoni
    The composer Ferruccio Busoni produced a large number of adaptations, transcriptions, and editions of works by other composers. He also wrote a number of cadenzas for compositions by other composers. This article presents a complete catalog of these works....

  • Catalog of original compositions by Ferruccio Busoni
    Catalog of original compositions by Ferruccio Busoni
    This article presents a complete catalog of original compositions by Ferruccio Busoni, including a large number of early works, most of which remain unpublished. The earliest preserved pieces were written when he was barely seven years old...

  • List of recorded compositions by Ferruccio Busoni
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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