Works For Keyboard By J.S. Bach - Publication History

Publication History

See also Bach compositions printed during the composer's lifetime

Many of Bach's works for keyboard were published in Bach's own lifetime, by the composer himself, under the title Clavier-Übung (Keyboard Practice) I-IV. The first volume, Bach's Opus 1, was published in 1731, while the last was published a decade later. The volumes are an open imitation of two volumes published by Bach's Leipzig predecessor Johann Kuhnau under the same title. Kuhnau used arrayed keys to structure his exercises, a model which Bach emulated through the Clavier-Übung volumes. The Well-Tempered Clavier, however, was not published until half a century after Bach's death, although they were in circulation before that in manuscript form. Of the four Clavier-Übung works, the first, second and last contain music written for harpsichord, while the third is devoted to compositions for organ.