The subject is derived from the finale of No. 12 of the Trio Sonatas, Op. 1 (1694, Venice). There are three fugues in total that borrow subjects from this collection, and they are believed to have been composed around the same period, prior to his appointment in Weimar. Characteristics of these early fugues include a lack of clear design in the subject exposition and the practice of concluding the piece with a toccata-like passage. When the design of the subject exposition is unclear, the alternation between sections where the subject is presented by each voice and sections of free motivic development (episodes) is not distinct; indeed, such fugues may even lack episodic sections altogether. Furthermore, sequential passages and cadences often feel formulaic and redundant. BWV 951, the last of the "Albinoni Fugues", was extensively revised and rewritten as BWV 951a, with old clichés, including the concluding passage, being eliminated during this process. The revision is presumed to have occurred during the Weimar period, indicating that Bach himself consciously broke away from his "early" fugues around this time.

BWV 946 appears to have been composed as an etude, particularly early in Bach's creative history. The voices are not maintained with great strictness, and no special contrapuntal techniques, such as counter-subjects or inversions, are observed. Despite occasionally reducing to two voices, the overall impression is somewhat ponderous, which stems from the voices counterpointing the subject failing to create contrast in terms of rhythm or melodic shape. Therefore, performers will likely be required to pay attention to clearly highlighting the extremely lucid, arch-shaped subject in C major.

Furthermore, when performed on harpsichord or piano, some adjustments, such as octave transposition, must be made to the lowest voice in the final four and a half measures.