Little Fugue: 4 Clarinets Score & Parts

Marlatt's arrangement makes this Baroque cornerstone accessible to clarinet quartets without sacrificing the counterpoint that makes Bach's writing so rewarding. Each player gets genuinely interesting material, which means your section stays engaged and invested rather than enduring filler parts. It's the kind of arrangement that teaches young musicians what Bach was actually doing.

The clarity of Bach's counterpoint shines on clarinet. The combination of warmth, precision, and inherent blend in the clarinet section brings out the architecture of the fugue while maintaining the structural integrity Bach intended. There's both intellectual rigor and genuine musical satisfaction in executing this work.

Intermediate clarinet quartets ready to tackle standard Baroque repertoire with real musical substance. This works for chamber groups in high school band programs, community bands with developed reed sections, or college conductors building their chamber repertoire library.

• Balance the entrance points carefully. Since each clarinet voice will emerge and recede as the fugal subject passes around the ensemble, listen constantly for who holds the primary line in any given moment.
• Practice the piece at a slower tempo than your target speed until the voice independence feels secure. Rushing the rhythmic clarity will blur the contrapuntal writing.
• Mark your entrances and releases clearly in rehearsal. The precision of when voices enter and drop out is what makes fugal texture audible to an audience.
• Attend to articulation as a unifying tool. Subtle consistency in how you tongue similar passages across all four parts will help audiences track the counterpoint.

Consider pairing it with a larger Bach work or another Baroque fugue for a program exploring Bach's compositional thinking. It also sits naturally in a concert celebrating clarinet repertoire or as a substantial chamber piece in a mixed recital. The piece is substantial enough to anchor a short concert segment without feeling like filler.

• Tracking multiple independent melodic lines simultaneously
• Understanding fugal structure and subject manipulation
• Executing clear phrase entrances and releases
• Balancing ensemble sound when voices cross registers
• Reading and performing Baroque articulation conventions
• Sustaining focused intonation across extended counterpoint