Prelude (music)

A Prelude, also Praeludium (Latin praeludium, foreplay ) or Prelude (French ), Preludio (Italian ), is an instrumental work with eröffnendem or hinführendem character.

( Or older: Praeambulum ) Originally, the Prelude was a hinführendes on a hymn or a worship service eröffnendes work for organ before it went ahead as an independent form of a fugue or other work (eg, Johann Sebastian Bach, Preludes and Fugues for Organ or two parts of the Well -Tempered Clavier ). The introductory piece of music of an opera, operetta or other musical theater piece can, however, both a prelude ( in German language, but then called foreplay ) as also an overture or Italian Sinfonia.

In the 19th century, the Prélude for keyboard instruments developed into an independent character piece in which the original issuing function was lost.

Great significance of the 24 Preludes, Op 28 by Frédéric Chopin: From short album sheets over etude -like sketches, to longer, to the Nocturnes reminiscent pieces in ternary form presented the compositional imagination of the composer. He ordered all the pieces according to the circle of fifths with suffix of minor parallel from C major to D minor. This cycle had great influence on composers such as Sergei Rachmaninoff and Alexander Scriabin, who composed also Préludes.

In the course of time, the Prélude developed continued - the great orchestral works " Les Preludes " by Franz Liszt and " Prélude à l' après -midi d'un faune " by Claude Debussy have in common with the origin of a " prelude " nothing more.