The prelude, originally an improvisatory form, evolved into a standalone genre over the course of music history. While it was often used to introduce larger works, composers increasingly began to treat preludes as self-sufficient pieces, allowing for the expression of a wide range of musical ideas and characters. The concept of writing a set of 24 preludes—covering all major and minor keys—was popularized by J.S. Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier and later expanded upon by composers such as Chopin, Scriabin, and Rachmaninov, among many others. This program brings together preludes by various composers from different centuries, creating a kind of time travel through the genre’s evolution and the broader history of keyboard music. The brief notes below offer a guide to accompany this musical journey. Louis Couperin – Unmeasured Prelude in F Major Louis Couperin is one of the earliest composers to develop the keyboard prelude as an independent genre. A defining feature of the French harpsichord tradition, the unmeasured prelude is written without rhythmic notation, leaving phrasing and pacing to the performer's discretion. Sergei Rachmaninov – Prelude in G Minor, Op. 23, No. 5 One of Rachmaninov's most well-known preludes, the G minor Prelude is part of his set of 10 preludes, Op. 23, dedicated to his cousin Alexander Siloti. Later, Rachmaninov composed 13 more preludes, Op. 32, which, along with his early Prelude, Op. 3, No. 2, completed his own collection of 24 preludes. George Frideric Handel – Prelude from Suite in F-Sharp Minor, HWV 431 This prelude is the opening movement of Handel's Suite in F-sharp Minor, HWV 431, published in 1720 as part of his Eight Great Suites for keyboard. Unlike the unmeasured preludes of earlier French composers, it features the dotted rhythms of the French overture, a style frequently used in the openings of Baroque operas, oratorios, and instrumental works. Alexander Siloti – Prelude in B Minor (after Prelude in E Minor, BWV 855a by J.S. Bach) Alexander Siloti is perhaps better known for his famous Prelude in B minor than for his varied contributions, including conducting the Moscow premiere of Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto, introducing Stravinsky's music to Diaghilev, and being a Liszt student who later taught at Juilliard for many years. The arrangement of Bach's Prelude is just one of over 200 similar works by Siloti. Jean-Philippe Rameau – Prelude in A Minor from Premier livre de pièces de clavecin The Prelude in A Minor is part of Rameau's Premier livre de pièces de clavecin, his first published collection of harpsichord works. The prelude begins with an unmeasured section, where phrasing and rhythm are left to the discretion of the performer. Following this free-flowing introduction, the piece transitions into a measured section with clear rhythmic notation, creating a striking contrast between the two sections. Sergei Prokofiev – Prelude, Op. 12, No. 7 Sergei Prokofiev did not attempt to compose a complete set of 24 preludes and wrote only one short prelude. This early composition, created during his conservatory years, is one of 10 pieces in a set primarily based on Baroque genres, where Prokofiev's distinctive musical language is already clearly evident. Johann Sebastian Bach – Little Prelude in C Minor, BWV 934 Unpublished until 1802, the Little Prelude in C minor, BWV 934, is part of Bach's set of Six Little Preludes (BWV 933–938). While simple in structure, the prelude contains musical ideas and harmonic progressions that Bach would later develop in his more advanced works, showcasing his early experimentation with chromaticism and contrapuntal textures. Maurice Ravel – Prelude in A Minor Ravel's Prelude in A minor was commissioned for the 1913 sight-reading competition at the Paris Conservatory and was later dedicated to its winner, Jeanne Leleu. She went on to become a professor of sight-reading at the Conservatoire and is also renowned for premiering Ravel's Ma mère l’Oye Suite. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Prelude in C Major, K. 284a (K. 300g/395) Often referred to as the Capriccio (K. 300g/395), the Prelude in C Major, K. 284a, is believed to have been composed by Mozart for his sister, Nannerl, as a warm-up exercise. The piece is structured in four distinct sections, leading some to refer to it as the “Four Preludes.” Nikolai Kapustin – Prelude in A-Flat Major, Op. 53 Nikolai Kapustin, trained as a classical pianist at the Moscow Conservatory, never received formal composition training but became captivated by jazz, partly through Voice of America radio broadcasts during his conservatory years. He later gained recognition for his unique style, combining jazz harmony with classical genres. His contributions to classical and jazz music include composing 24 preludes as well as 24 preludes and fugues. Ludwig van Beethoven – Prelude in All Major Keys, Op. 39, No. 1 At just 19 years old, Beethoven composed a piece that cycles through all twelve major keys in a continuous, unbroken progression. Though published much later and assigned a high opus number out of chronological order, the Prelude in All Major Keys, Op. 39, No. 1, stands as a unique example of Beethoven's early compositional style, with his distinctive energy evident from the very first note. George Gershwin – Prelude No. 1 Originally planned as a set of 24 preludes titled The Melting Pot, George Gershwin ultimately composed only three. In 1926, he premiered them at the Roosevelt Hotel, helping to popularize the prelude form in the New York jazz scene. Edvard Grieg – Praeludium from Holberg Suite, Op. 40 The Praeludium is the opening movement of Edvard Grieg's Holberg Suite, Op. 40, composed in 1884 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Norwegian playwright Ludvig Holberg. The suite is inspired by 18th-century dance forms, with each movement reflecting Baroque style reimagined through Grieg's Romantic lens. Maxim Shalygin – Prelude IV Maxim Shalygin, a Ukrainian-born composer based in the Netherlands, is known for his approach that expands traditional playing techniques while maintaining a tonal language and avoiding avant-garde radicalism. His 9 Preludes for piano solo were among his first published compositions. Leonid Desyatnikov – Prelude No. 4 from Songs of Bukovina Karol Szymanowski – Prelude in D Minor, Op. 1 Often called “The Father of 20th-Century Polish Music,” Karol Szymanowski composed the Prelude in D Minor, Op. 1, while still a teenager in a small town in present-day central Ukraine, where he was born and lived until the age of 19. The prelude reflects the influence of Chopin while also foreshadowing the harmonic innovations that would come to define Szymanowski's later works. The Songs of Bukovina by Leonid Desyatnikov is a cycle of 24 preludes inspired by folklore melodies originating from the region of Bukovina, which today is divided between Romania and Ukraine. In Prelude No. 4, Desyatnikov, who describes his style as “an emancipation of consonance, transformation of banality, and 'minimalism' with a human face,” incorporates the melody of the Ukrainian folk song “Oh, Petrivochka, a night so short.” Isaac Albéniz – Prelude from Chants d’Espagne, Op. 232 Isaac Albéniz's Prelude, later retitled Asturias (also known as Leyenda), is one of his most famous works. Originally composed to recreate the sounds of flamenco guitar on the piano, it was later transcribed for guitar and has since become one of the most performed pieces in the classical guitar repertoire. Fabian Beltran – Prelude V “Sincopado” Fabian Beltran, a New York-based composer born in Bogotá, Colombia, composed Prelude V in a single night. The piece features a descending chromatic idea that is developed through mixed meter, syncopation, and additive rhythm. John Corigliano – Prelude for Paul Alexander Scriabin – Prelude in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 9, No. 1 Scriabin composed a total of 90 preludes across his three main compositional stages, including his Chopin-inspired 24 Preludes, Op. 11, in all keys. The earlier Prelude, Op. 9, No. 1, was written for the left hand alone as a result of the composer's overuse injury to his right hand during practice. John Corigliano composed Prelude for Paul as a commission for Paul Sekhri, an amateur pianist and biotech CEO, who has a tattoo of the opening measures from Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2 on his forearm. Given this, Corigliano felt it would be fitting to incorporate those measures into the piece. Tian Zhou – Prelude Claude Debussy – Prelude from Suite Bergamasque, L. 75 Inspired by the preludes of Bach and Chopin, Debussy would later compose his own set of 24. An earlier example of his Commissioned by Salon de Virtuosi, the piece was first premiered by Claire Huangci on February 28, 2024. Inspired by an imaginary ballet, Prelude consists of several contrasting sections with a hint of Chinese folk elements. approach to the genre is the opening movement of Suite Bergamasque, which already reflects his distinctive Impressionist musical language. Frédéric Chopin – Prelude in B-Flat Minor, Op. 28, No. 16 Chopin's 24 Preludes, Op. 28, is considered the most influential 19th-century work in the prelude genre, inspiring generations of composers to write their own sets of piano preludes—a tradition that continues today. Prelude No. 16 stands out as an example of the extraordinary virtuosity in Chopin's works, showcasing both his technical brilliance and expressive depth. Carl Vine – Thumper from The Anne Landa Preludes Commissioned in memory of Anne Landa, a major supporter of the arts in Sydney, The Anne Landa Preludes is a set of 12 preludes. Prelude No. 3, titled Thumper, features complex rhythmic patterns and frequent meter changes. - Stanislav Khristenko