Description
Published in 1690, Georg Muffat’s Apparatus musico-organisticus is a volume of twelve organ toccatas with a supplement of four occasional pieces for either harpsichord or organ. The multi-sectional toccatas are virtuoso in content and cover a range of musical styles, which Muffat thought to be a key feature of his compositional technique. The four additional pieces include the famous Ciacona and Passacaglia and an extensive set of variations on a blacksmith’s song.
In the preface, the editor examines the life of Muffat, discusses the available sources and stylistic influences. Muffat was one of the few seventeenth-century composers to discuss the performance practice of his string music, and his essays (in four languages) have each been dissected and discussed with a view to the performance of his organ music. The preface also discusses stylus phantasticus and rhythmic alteration, as well as fingering and registration.
