Toccata prima oder erstes musicalisches Blumen-Feld

This is the first piece of Speth's ouevre from 1693, Ars Magna Consoni et Dissoni. The opening toccata (first of ten) in D minor has several independent ideas the composer segmented together in three main parts.

Part one has a florid feel, featuring a descending scalar four-note pattern, which I further ornamented. It modulates to the dominant by the end.

Part two is a separate four-voice fughetta in which Speth uses the opening descending scalar snippet as part of the theme. I put a mordent on the first note of each voice's entry (and some of the second entries) to highlight it. After the bass enters, the second section suddenly slows and concludes with an Adagio and modulation to F major.

Part three shifts character completely. The common time from the first two sections now has a dance-like feel in 12/8. The main pattern here is a descending major scale, and I ornamented it as in the opening descending pattern to highlight the connection of the material between parts one and three. After 16 measures, Speth smoothly transitions back to common time, modulates back to D minor, and closes the piece in a codetta with the florid descending fourths again. I provided one last final flourish on the Picardy third at the end.

I used the extended, modernized (no short octaves and stable wind supply) version of this organ sample. I also utilized extended Hauptwerk couplers when registering each of the three sections to get the character I really wanted.

For example, in part one, I added Hauptwerk's sub-couplers in the manuals (16') to get more gravitas and depth. When you look at the score, there are numerous places where Speth has 5 voices, with the fundament tripled. It's physically impossible to play, even with added pedal and parts shared between the hands, so the coupler addition I feel is still authentic to Speth's intentions. This then allows for one to use more authentic Baroque fingerings and achieve a more consistent articulation.