About the Composition
Prelude and Fugue in B-Flat Major is a transcription of J.S. Bach's Prelude and Fugue in C Major, BWV 553 for organ. A transcription is defined by Merriam-Webster as an arrangement of a musical composition for some instrument or voice other than the original. However, strictly speaking, a transcription differs from an arrangement in that transcriptions are faithful adaptations, whereas arrangements change significant aspects of the original piece.
While organized choirs, orchestras, and other instrumental ensembles have been around for centuries, organized concert bands have only been around for over 100 years, there is very little original literature from before the turn of the 20th Century. With the lack of original music for early concert bands, band directors would transcribe orchestral, choral, and instrumental works to play in a wind band setting.
You might notice the BWV with a number after it at the end of the Prelude and Fugue in C Major. These letters and numbers correspond to where Prelude and Fugue in C Major fits into the catalog of musical works by J.S. Bach. In 1950, Wolfgang Schmieder developed a numbering system to catalog all of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. This system, known as the Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis (BWV), is different than numbering systems for other composers in that it assigned BWV #'s based on the genre of composition (thematic) rather than when it was published (chronological). In other words, a low BWV # does not necessarily indicate that it is an early work of J.S. Bach. Prelude and Fugue in C Major, which Roland L. Moehlmann transcribed into Prelude and Fugue in Bb Major, is BWV 553, meaning its falls under the category of Preludes & Fugues, Toccatas & Fugues, Fantasias & Fugues, and Passacaglias & Fugues for Organ (BWV 531-582).
Specifically, Prelude and Fugue in C Major, BWV 553 is the first in a collection of 8 preludes and fugues for keyboard and pedal entitled Acht Kleine Praeludien und Fugen (“Eight Short Preludes and Fugues.”) While this collection was originally attributed to J.S. Bach, many scholars now believe these works were composed by Johann Tobias Krebs (b. July 7, 1690 – d. February 11, 1762), a German composer and distinguished organist who was a pupil of J.S. Bach from 1714-1717. However, even these works are no longer attributed to Bach, they still remain a part of the BWV catalog, as well as other works that have been disassociated from J.S. Bach.
The work itself was arranged by Moehlmann in 1955 while he was serving as the director of the Cedar Rapids Municipal Band. As mentioned above, Moehlmann had previous experiences with arranging preludes and fugues written by J.S. Bach for concert bands. For this transcription, he orchestrated the organ parts from Prelude and Fugue in C Major, BWV 553 for a concert band setting, making only changes to the key signature as well as the rhythm and meter of the piece. Here are excerpts from the original work for organ vs. the Moehlmann transcription to compare to see how Moehlmann adjusts the key signature, rhythm, and meter to make it more accessible to concert bands without straying away from the intentions of the composer.