The Musical Offering: Bach's Collection of Ricercars and Canons
What collection includes two ricercars that open the collection and ten "riddle" or "puzzle" canons?
A) Riddle Canons
B) The Ricercar Collection
C) Puzzle Canons
D) Bach's Musical Enigma
Final answer:
Bach's Musical Offering, presented to Frederick the Great, contains two ricercars and ten 'puzzle' canons, with the ricercars being a three-part invention and a six-part fugue, and the canons serving as musical riddles.
Explanation:
The collection that includes two ricercars that open the collection and ten "riddle" or "puzzle" canons is Bach's Musical Offering (Musikalisches Opfer, BWV 1079). This collection is a compilation of music that Johann Sebastian Bach presented to Frederick the Great, the king of Prussia, during a visit to Potsdam in 1747. The work contains a variety of pieces, including a trio sonata, several canons, and two ricercars. The two ricercars are a ricercar a 3, which is a three-part invention, and a ricercar a 6, a six-part fugue. The ten "puzzle" canons included in the collection can be thought of as musical riddles, where the performer must decipher how to play the piece based on limited notational instructions.
What other famous collections of music did Bach compose during his lifetime? Bach composed several famous collections of music during his lifetime, including The Well-Tempered Clavier, the Brandenburg Concertos, and the Goldberg Variations.