BWV 565, the organ piece every haunted castle borrows. The flourish falls three times, each an octave lower, then a dark diminished chord resolves to D minor.
The story
This is perhaps the most famous organ piece ever written, and also one of the most mysterious. No manuscript in Bach’s hand survives; the oldest copy was made by a younger organist, Johannes Ringk, and the date of composition is unknown.
Some scholars have even questioned whether Bach wrote it, or whether it began as a violin piece. Whoever wrote it, the opening flourish, a falling run and a huge diminished chord, sounds like a young virtuoso showing off.
Its spooky reputation comes from the 20th century: Disney’s Fantasia (1940) opened with it, and it has accompanied mad scientists and haunted castles in films ever since.
Three things to know
- A toccata (from the Italian “to touch”) is a piece meant to show off a player’s fingers.
- On the organ, the lowest notes are played with the feet.
- If Bach wrote it young, he was about the same age as many university students today.
How to play it
Silence is part of the music here. Let the rests after each flourish ring before you go on.