Minuet in G major (BWV Anh. 114)

Minuet in G major (BWV Anh. 114)
"Minuet in G major" redirects here. For other uses, see Minuet in G major (disambiguation).

The Minuet in G major is a keyboard piece included in the 1725 Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach. Until 1970 it was attributed to Johann Sebastian Bach (BWV Anh. 114), it is now universally attributed to Christian Petzold.[1][2][3]

Contents

Provenance

The Minuet in G major is found in the 1725 Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach, where it appears with its companion piece, Minuet in G minor, as a pair to be performed da capo. The notebook in question, which belonged to Johann Sebastian Bach's second wife Anna Magdalena, is a compilation of music by various composers of the late 17th and early 18th century, including François Couperin, Georg Böhm, Johann Sebastian Bach himself and possibly some of his sons (e.g. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach). Most of the entries in the 1725 notebook were made by Anna Magdalena herself, and a few were contributed by Johann Sebastian and various friends of the Bach family. Only a few composers are identified in the notebook. The Minuet in G major and its companion are two of the many anonymous works included. In the 1970s the Minuet in G major was identified as a piece from a harpsichord suite by Dresden organist Christian Petzold.[4]

In popular culture

The melody from the 1965 pop song "A Lover's Concerto", written by American songwriters Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell, was based on the Minuet in G major. The song was recorded by the girl group The Toys and reached #2 in the U.S. and #5 in the U.K. Billboard Hot 100 list. Global sales of "A Lover's Concerto" exceeded 2 million copies and was awarded gold record by the R.I.A.A..[5]

In the 1984 film Electric Dreams, the piece is the basis for a duet, or a friendly musical duel, between cellist Madeline and Edgar, the computer. This song from the movie soundtrack, titled "The Duel," was composed and performed by Giorgio Moroder.

In the 1986 film Adventures of the American Rabbit, The song can be heard as Rob the Rabbit takes piano lessons and plays it.

The 1995 film Mr. Holland's Opus has a scene in which the title character, a high school music teacher, explains to his students the connection between "A Lover's Concerto" and the Minuet in G major.

References

  1. ^ Wolff, Christoph. "Bach. III. 7. Johann Sebastian Bach. Works", Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy (accessed 21 December 2006), grovemusic.com (subscription access).
  2. ^ Williams, Peter F.. 2007. J.S. Bach: A Life in Music, p. 158. Cambridge University Press.
  3. ^ Schulenberg, David. 2006. The Keyboard Music of J.S. Bach, p. 448.
  4. ^ Schulze, Hans-Joachim. "Ein 'Dresdner Menuett' im zweiten Klavierbüchlien der Anna Magdalena Bach. Nebst Hinweisen zur Überlieferung einiger Kammermusikwerke Bachs." Bach-Jahrbuch 65 (1979 pp. 45-64), pp. 54-58, 64.
  5. ^ Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 198. ISBN 0-214-20512-6. 

External links

Stub icon This article about a classical composition is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.