Sinfonia No.3 in D major

Description

Three voices hand the subject among themselves on nearly equal terms in this D major piece, the third of the three-part Sinfonias. Early forms of many pieces in the set were entered, under the name Fantasia, into the Clavier-Büchlein for Wilhelm Friedemann before being gathered as sinfonias in the fair copy of 1723. The collection grew from the practical task of teaching a son, and went on to serve as teaching material for later generations.

None of the voices settles into a purely accompanying role anywhere in its 4/4 bars. With 665 notes in 89 seconds it is denser than the first two pieces, and lines that never stop moving support the bright sound of the key. The range runs from C#2 to C6, which fits on a 61-key keyboard.

Because the three voices are equal, even at this intermediate level you constantly have to decide to bring forward slightly whichever voice has the subject. Start by listening while following in the score view which voice carries it. The hand colours show the passages where the right hand holds two voices at once. Lower the playback speed to give each voice its own line, and settle the distribution between the fingers in the busy passages with an A-B loop.

A set of three-part counterpoint studies (BWV 787-801) that expand on the two-part Inventions, teaching more complex polyphony.