Bach and the patterns of transformation

Abstract

This article represents a unique interpretation of Lewin's transformational attitude: rather than elaborating mathematically grounded transformational analyses, this article pursues the performer's physical actions in order to heuristically reconstruct the compositional logic of the Corrente from J. S. Bach's Keyboard Partita in E Minor. Employing the analytical model advanced by Laurence Dreyfus in Bach and the Patterns of Invention, this article conceives Bach's compositional decisions in terms of a subtle physical performance challenge posed at the Corrente's outset. Examining earlier versions of the Corrente deepens this understanding, suggesting on Bach's part a chronological progression toward a more bodily compositional economy.