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Prelude 8 in D-sharp minor BWV 877
Book II of the Well-Tempered Clavier. Under its figuration, this prelude is 61 chord changes across 37 bars — ranked 38 of 42 by measured difficulty (expert) in this survey. Played as block chords, it's a progression you can learn in an afternoon; the piece is that progression wearing sixteenth notes.
Practice this piece → Practice chords → Learn it section by section → Hear the harmony →
How it opens
The first changes are iv7 (D#) · i7 (F#) · i7 · iv7 (D#) · V7/III (E#) · III7 (E#) · i · iv7 (B) — and the whole prelude keeps moving at roughly that harmonic pace.
What it leans on
Of 81 labeled changes, the harmonies that do the most work: iv7 (B) (4×), III+7 (E#) (4×), i7 (A#) (3×), V7/iv (A#) (3×), III+7 (A#) (3×).
Free scores
- Blocked-chord reduction (MusicXML) — the harmony skeleton the player performs
- The prelude as written (MusicXML)