enerally, however, the comparison, we believe, stands good.

John Sebastian Bach devoted the greater part of his life to the art of
developing themes. His skill was wonderful, and so, too,--considering
the restrictions of the fugue-form,--was the imagination which he
displayed. In Beethoven the old master seems to live again, only under
new and more favourable conditions. Bach was brought up in the way of
the fugue, Beethoven of the sonata; and, it may be added, from these,
respectively, neither ever departed. From early youth onward, our
composer was a deep student of Bach, and assimilated some of his
predecessor's methods. One special feature of Beethoven's mode of
development was to take a few notes, or sometimes merely a figure,
from his theme, and to expand them into a phrase; as, for instance, in
the opening movement of the sonata in C minor (Op. 10, No. 1), in
which

[Music illustration]

forms the material for the closing phrase of the exposition section.
And the opening figure of the Finale of the same sonata is employed in
a similar manner at the commencement of the second section of the
movement. The Rondo of Op. 10, No. 3, furnishes good illustrations.
Now let us turn to Bach. In the 13th Fugue of the "Well-tempered
Clavier," the closing notes of the subject

[Music illustration]

are expanded, commencing at bar twenty-four, into a melodious phrase.
Also in the Prelude which follows (No. 14)

[Music illustration] becomes [Music illustration]

And some magnificent examples might be culled from the noble Preludes
in E flat and B flat minor (Book 1, Nos. 8 and 22). Again, another
special feature of Beethoven is the extension of a phrase by
repetition of the last clause,--a method too familiar to need
quotation. But let us give one illustration from Bach (Book 1, Fugue
6)--

[Music illustration]

The 8th Prelude of Book I has been already mentioned to illustrate one
point, but there are other Beethovenisms in it.

These comparisons must not be misunderstood; study of Bach
strengthened Beethoven's genius. We are not speaking of bald
imitation, not even of conscious imitation. He not only received the
message of the old master, as a child, but while he was a child; and
that no doubt helped him more than all the works of his predecessors
from Emanuel Bach upwards. It appealed to him strongly, because it was
based on nature. Bach's Fugues are living organisms; they are
expansions of some central though