Let us describe briefly the above-mentioned B flat Sonata. The first movement is in common time, but the composer gave it no heading. It is generally supposed (Becker, Rimbault, Pauer) to be an Allegro; moderato might well be added, for the stately, Handelian-like (the anachronism must be excused) music will scarcely bear a rapid tempo. The movement opens with an eight-bar phrase, closing on the dominant. Then the music, evolved from previous material, passes rapidly through various related keys. After this modulation section there is a cadence to F major, and in this, the dominant key, something like a new subject appears, though it is closely allied to the first. A return is soon made to the principal key, but there is no repetition of the opening theme. After a cadence ending on the tonic (B flat), and two coda-like bars, comes a fugal movement, still in the same key. The vigorous subject, the well-contrasted counterpoint, the interesting episodes, and many attractive details help one to forget the monotony of key so prevalent in the days in which this sonata was written. This, and indeed other fugues of Kuhnau show strong foreshadowings of Handel and Bach; of this matter, however, more anon. The counterpoint to the third entry of the subject is evolved from the opening subject of the sonata. The third movement consists of a fine Adagio in E flat, in the key of the subdominant and in three-four time. Then follows a short Allegro in three-four time, of polyphonic character. At the close of the movement Kuhnau has written the opening chords of the first movement with the words Da Capo. A similar indication is to be found in one of the "Frische Früchte" Sonatas. This repetition, also the third movement leading directly to the fourth, and the thematic connection mentioned above, would seem to show that the composer regarded the various sections of his sonata as parts of a whole.
In addition, Kuhnau wrote thirteen sonatas. The "Frische Clavier Früchte," or "Sieben Suonaten von guter Invention u. Manier auf dem Clavier zu spielen," were published in 1696, and later editions in 1710 and 1724. In a quaint preface the composer tells us that in naming his "Fresh Fruits" "sonatas," he kept in mind all kinds of inventiones and changes (Veränderungen) by which so-called sonatas are superior to mere partitas. Already a century before this preface was written, Praetorius had distinguished between two classes of instrumental music: the one, grave; the other, gay. The composer has also a word to say about the graces or ornaments, the "sugar which sweetens the fruits." In modern reprints of Kuhnau the sugar is sometimes forgotten.[43] These "Frische Früchte" were followed by six "Bible" Sonatas in 1700. The former, both as regards form and contents, are remarkable. Kuhnau was a man of deeper thought and loftier conception than Emanuel Bach, but he was fettered by fugal forms,[44] and was fighting against them much in the same spirit in which Beethoven, a century later, fought against sonata-form, in the most general sense of that term. Beethoven was not only the more gifted, but he profited by the experiments of his predecessors, and he enjoyed the advantage of a vastly improved technique; Haydn, Mozart, Clementi, and others were the stepping-stones by which he rose to higher things. Kuhnau's attempts at sonata writing were bold, often rugged; and his experiments in programme-music, extraordinary. The latter were soon forgotten, while the clever, clear-formed sonatas of Emanuel Bach served as a gratification to the age in which he lived, and as guides to the composers who followed him. The "Frische Früchte," standing between Corelli and Emanuel Bach, are of interest. The fugal element is still strong; and we find, not so much the smooth style of Corelli as the vigorous style of Froberger and other composers of North Germany. In character of subject-matter and in form there is decided advance as compared with the B flat Sonata. Kuhnau still seems rather limited in figures, and therefore repeats himself;[45] then again his movements do not always show gradation of interest. Their order and number are, indeed, perplexing, and not always satisfactory. The 2nd Sonata, in D, for instance, commences with a fine Allegro, followed first by a short Adagio, commencing in the relative minor, and intermixed with short presto passages, and then by a lively movement in six-eight time. These three would form an admirable sonata, yet the composer does not end here. There is still another short Adagio, and a concluding movement; and in spite of some fine passages, these appendages form a decided anti-climax. Similar instances are to be found in the other sonatas.
Now for a few words concerning their form. Some of the opening movements (for instance, those of Nos. 1, 2) are practically based on fugue-form, with which, by the way, sonata-form is allied.
The first movement of No. 4, in C minor, is of interest, both in its resemblances to, and differences from, modern sonata-form. It has four sections:—
a. Eleven bars, beginning and ending in C minor, and containing a characteristic theme.
b. Eleven bars, beginning in E flat (i.e. relative major of opening key) and closing in G minor (i.e. key of minor dominant). It contains a theme rhythmically allied to the principal theme. This section is repeated.
c. Nine-and-a-half bars, opening in C minor, and passing to, and closing in E flat. It contains imitative passages evolved from the principal theme.
d. Exact repetition of first section, only with a close on the major chord.
The last movement of the 6th Sonata, in B flat, offers a still more striking resemblance to sonata-form; the various sections are better balanced; the middle or development section (with its close strettos) is particularly noticeable; also the recapitulation, which is not literal, as in the above example. The slow movements—occasionally very short—follow no particular plan. The fugal element is always more or less present, but some of the other movements have somewhat of a suite character; No. 6, indeed, opens with a Ciaccona. There is a certain formality about Kuhnau's music, and, for reasons already mentioned, he is occasionally monotonous. But there is an independent spirit running through his sonatas, and a desire to escape from the trammels of tradition which are quite refreshing. And there is a nobility in the style and skill in the workmanship which remind us of the great Bach. There are, indeed, resemblances to Bach, also to Handel. Scheibe, in his Critischer Musikus, mentions Kuhnau, in conjunction with Keiser, Telemann, and Handel, as one of the greatest composers of the eighteenth century. The mention of Kuhnau together with Handel deserves note. The constant discoveries which are being made of Handel's indebtedness to other composers suggest the thought that perhaps Kuhnau was also laid under contribution. No one, we think, can hear the "Bible" Sonatas without coming to the conclusion that Handel was acquainted with the works of his illustrious predecessor. We will just place side by side three passages from the "Bible" Sonatas of Kuhnau with three from a harpsichord suite of Handel—
