No. 19 in A Major [Prelude]

This is an elegant three-voice prelude. This prelude must truly flow horizontally. To achieve this horizontal flow, techniques that obscure the beat are necessary, and pedaling is one such technique. Use the pedal 'instantaneously' in all parts, such as the repeated notes in the left hand and the passages in the right hand, to connect the lines.

This prelude is, without exception, composed of three complete voices. Each voice part is entirely logical. Performers must clearly recognize each voice part without mistaking them. For example, between measures 14-15, the dotted whole note C-sharp in the bass of measure 14 connects to the dotted quarter note D on the first beat of measure 15. This D might appear at first glance to connect from the alto in measure 14, so pay attention to such places. You will notice that the alto leaps to B in the treble clef in measure 15.

Furthermore, the rests in this prelude are written with remarkable precision. For instance, the series of quarter notes in the bass between measures 4-5 are always written with an eighth rest, so strictly observe these eighth rests. The same applies to measures 25-26. These figures, resembling a basso continuo with a quarter note plus an eighth rest, are actually only written in the bass voice and do not appear in the alto or soprano. From this perspective, the bass voice truly fulfills half the role of an accompaniment, functioning as a bass, with the two upper voices resting upon it.

The two voices resting upon the bass can maintain the polyphonic order by preserving their independence. For example, in measure 1, the soprano's A on beats 3-4 is a dotted half note; one might wish to sustain this A and connect it to measure 2, but since the alto begins on beats 3-4, the soprano's A tends to be obscured. In such sections, clearly distinguish between the soprano and alto, playing the soprano brilliantly and the alto more subdued.

Overall, this is a very subdued and elegant prelude, but there is one section where the emotion swells. This is measure 20. Observing the bass movement, it becomes clear that such bass movement is unique to this measure. The soprano and alto figures ascend by more than an octave within this single measure. It is, in a sense, an expression of intense joy.