About this work
A ricercar unfolds through imitation, as voices take up the same motif and move it through the musical texture. In this volume, the first twelve pieces are attributed to Johann Jakob Froberger. According to the notice in the edition preserved by IMSLP, Nos. 13 and 14 are not. That distinction matters: the title of a collection does not erase differences of attribution between the pieces it contains.
To practise the ricercars, begin by isolating each subject from its context. Then locate its entries and transformations. Slightly differentiated articulation is enough to clarify the counterpoint; marking every appearance with a change of volume would make for a rather conspicuous demonstration.
On the organ, a restrained registration helps the listener follow the voice leading and harmonic suspensions. Practise crossings slowly, then restore the tempo without losing the ends of phrases. Apply the same musical care to the last two pieces while retaining the cautious attribution: a work’s quality does not depend on attaching a name too quickly.
What the document containsa collection of 14 ricercars for organ;Nos. 1 to 12 attributed to Froberger, with Nos. 13 and 14 identified as not being by him;a 35-page PDF, with no accompanying MIDI file.The file reproduces a historical public-domain edition by Guido Adler.