The Prelude in C major is two minutes of piano music with no tune. Johann Sebastian Bach built it from chords, played one note at a time. The same pattern of notes fills every bar until the last three. It is the first piece in a famous book that Bach finished in 1722.
Quick facts
- Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach, who lived from 1685 to 1750
- From: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1
- Finished: 1722
- For: a keyboard. Today, most people play it on the piano
- Length: about 2 minutes
- Made of: 35 bars of broken chords
The first page of a big book
The Well-Tempered Clavier is two books of keyboard pieces. Each book has a prelude and a fugue in all 24 keys. Bach wrote on the title page that the music was for young people who wanted to learn, and for the enjoyment of those who already played well.
“Clavier” is an old word for a keyboard instrument. In Bach’s day, that meant a harpsichord or a clavichord. Read the harpsichord for kids.
This prelude opens Book 1. Bach had written an earlier version of it in a notebook for his oldest son, Wilhelm Friedemann, who was about ten.
How it is built
A chord is three or more notes played together. In this piece, Bach breaks each chord apart and plays its notes one by one, from low to high. A broken chord of this kind is also called an arpeggio.
Each bar works the same way.
- The left hand plays two low notes and holds them.
- The right hand plays three higher notes, and plays them again.
- The whole pattern repeats.
- In the next bar, the chord changes, and the pattern starts over.
So each bar holds one chord, played as eight quick notes, twice. Read chords explained for kids.
What to listen for
| Part | What happens |
|---|---|
| The opening | A bright, plain chord. The music feels at home |
| The journey | The chords change, one bar at a time. Some sound sweet, and some sound tense |
| The low rumble | Near the end, the lowest note stays the same for several bars while the chords shift above it |
| The end | The pattern breaks. One long run, and a final chord |
With no tune to follow, the story is in the chords. Listen for the bars that seem to ask a question and the bars that seem to answer.
A tune added later
More than 100 years after Bach died, the French composer Charles Gounod wrote a slow tune to go on top of this prelude. That piece is the Bach and Gounod “Ave Maria.” Read Ave Maria for kids.
For piano families
Students often meet this prelude in the middle years of lessons. The notes are not hard to find. The hard part is to play every note at an even speed and an even volume, so that the chords glow. A teacher will decide when it fits.
A child who is not ready for the whole piece can play the first bar. With the left hand, hold middle C and the E above it. With the right hand, play G, C, E, and then G, C, E again. That is half of bar 1.
Things to do together
Tense or calm. Raise a hand for each chord that sounds tense. Lower it when the music relaxes.
Count the bars. Each bar is one chord. Tap once for each new chord, and count to 35.
Break a chord. At a piano, play C, E, and G together. Then play them one at a time, going up. That is what Bach does all the way through.
Add your own tune. Hum a slow tune while the prelude plays, as Gounod did.
Questions to ask
- Is there a tune you could sing?
- Which part feels the most tense?
- How do you know the piece is about to end?
Words to know
- Prelude: a short piece. In this book, each prelude comes before a fugue
- Broken chord: the notes of a chord played one at a time
- Clavier: an old word for a keyboard instrument
Print and play
Print a listening journal page. Read Bach for kids and print the Bach fact sheet. For what comes after a prelude, read what is a fugue? For more of Bach at the keyboard, read Toccata and Fugue in D minor for kids.
More from this guide
This article is part of Classical music listening guides for kids: famous pieces, one at a time.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.