Duets in E minor and G Major

Bach included four duets in his collection of organ works titled Clavier-Ubung III—(commonly referred to as the German Organ Mass)—published in 1739. Though written to be performed on the organ, the duets can easily be played on a harpsichord or modern piano. Called duets because they contain two independent voices—and not because they required two independent musicians—performing a fugue, the four duets see Bach exploring the full contrapuntal potential of the two voice fugue in remarkable ways. The Duet in E minor, BWV 802, is the first duet in the grouping and sets the mood with an invertible, double fugue flavored with syncopations and chromatic inflections.  

The third of the four duets in Bach’s Clavier-Ubung III, the Duet in G Major, BWV 804 stands in contrast to the first duet with its light, dance-like rhythm, seemingly simple melodic shape, and conventional harmonic progression over just 39 bars.