Natural Order in the Bach Ciaccona

The Ciaccona from Bach’s D-minor Partita For Solo Violin comprises 64 variations on a four-measure theme. Every variation follows or references one underlying bass line and one rhythmic pattern. To listen to the piece, which lasts about 15 minutes, one might not realize that the number of variations is so round. In places, it feels like the Ciaccona will keep going forever. When the Ciaccona does end (always a letdown!), it sounds as though Bach happened on a conclusion and stopped. But he didn’t stop there by chance. He stopped at the end of the 64th variation on his theme. A strict structure can underlie music that sounds creative and spontaneous.

It’s a surprise to learn that the Ciaconna has exactly 64 variations on a theme. The music feels so free and even rambling in some places, particularly where there are many 32nd notes. There are so many surprises, like the key changes, the transitions to new sections, and the introduction of new themes, which seem spontaneous, rather than conforming. The parts flow together so perfectly that it’s hard to believe that Bach wrote them to fit a mold. The Ciaccona sounds like the model from which a mold might be cast.

Perhaps it is wrong to assume that what is natural and flowing is unstructured. That may be a more modern outlook on things. Form and flow aren’t necessarily opposed. Could the structure help the piece flow?

In the past, people thought that what was natural was orderly. In Elizabethan England, people believed in the Great Chain of Being, in which God ruled men who ruled animals. People who practice Islam have great structure to their lives, praying five times per day. These are two examples that come to mind, but there are many other examples of the way humans lead structured lives.

Whether or not we humans choose to discipline ourselves, nature imposes order on our lives. Our days, weeks, months, and years are precisely patterned. Every day has 24 hours, the time it takes the earth to rotate once around its axis. Every year has 365 and 1/4 days, the time it takes the earth to orbit the sun. Our months correspond roughly to orbit of the moon around the earth. The lengths of our days and nights and the characters of our seasons depend on the movement of the sun and the earth.

Perhaps it’s not so surprising that Bach built his Ciaccona on a large and regular framework. The world is filled with structures, hierarchies, and repeating themes, from the planets in the universe, to our seasons, to our sunrises and sunsets, to our generations. Life is a series of variations on a 24-hour theme, each featuring the same sunrise, sunset, and motions of the planets and stars. Unlike Bach, we can’t plan ahead how many variations we are going to write.