Bach-Stokowski : Toccata and Fugue for organ, D minor

Among Stokowski's surviving transcriptions are thirty-seven arrangements of works by Johann Sebastian Bach. The D minor Toccata and Fugue, exhibited here, was first performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra in February 1926, was recorded the following year, and was subsequently published in 1952. Included among the compositions that are a part of Walt Disney's Fantasia, the Toccata and Fugue is Stokowski's most well-known transcription.

In preparing his arrangements Stokowski typically sketched his orchestration directly on an edition of the original work. He would then pass this music along to his copyist, who would write out a full score according to Stokowski's directions. This was indeed the way he approached his orchestration of the Bach Toccata and Fugue. The evidence lies in his copy of the original Bach work (below), which includes a detailed outline of his intended orchestration. That Stokowski's instructions are written in French throughout the music (e.g., "bois" for "woodwinds") suggests Lucien Cailliet was responsible for copying the work. Cailliet, with whom Stokowski conversed in French, was a clarinetist in the Philadelphia Orchestra and was one of the maestro's early collaborators.

Stokowski continually revised his conception of the music he wrote and performed, and the Toccata and Fugue is no exception. The evolution of the arrangement is discernible in his manuscript, which includes paste-overs and numerous alterations to notes, rhythms, and dynamics. Particularly interesting is a comparison of the manuscript with the published version of the arrangement (below), which highlights additional, and in many cases, more subtle alterations.

For a look at Stokowski’s score markings for his transcription click here.