PlayPiano
The short answer
Allemande, English Suite No. 3, BWV 808 is a piece by Johann Sebastian Bach from the Baroque era. PlayPiano puts it at Level 6, an estimate.
- Baroque
- dancing
- hand independence
- scales runs
- voicing
History
This Allemande follows the prelude in Bach’s Third English Suite. A tiny pickup opens into a conversation between flowing lines. Listen beneath the melody: the other voices keep adding their own ideas.
Sources
What to listen for
Small beginning
The single upper sixteenth-note pickup gives way to several voices. Hear it as the start of a sentence, not a separate flourish.
Two lines in motion
The upper sixteenth notes flow above a lower line with its own rhythm. Follow the bass for one hearing, then return to the upper melody.
The final turn
The upper trill and running lower notes lead into the last sustained harmony. Let the ornament decorate the arrival rather than replace it.
How hard is it
Continuous sixteenth-note lines, overlapping voices and ornaments need independent phrasing and balance. The opening pickup and both repeated sections also need a clear pulse.
About this piece
- Licence
- CC0
- Source
- musescore.com
More by Johann Sebastian Bach
- Prelude in C major, BWV 846Level 4, estimatedOpen to everyone
- Two-Part Invention No. 1 in C major, BWV 772Level 5, estimatedWith Maestro
- Italian Concerto in F major, BWV 971: III. PrestoLevel 9, estimatedWith Maestro
