For this entry in my My Journey series, I’m sharing my performance of the Minuet in G Minor, traditionally attributed to Johann Sebastian Bach, but now widely believed to have been composed by Christian Petzold. The piece comes from the Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach, a collection that has accompanied piano students for generations.
About the Piece
Minuet in G Minor (BWV Anh. 115) appears in the Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach (1725). Although long attributed to Bach, musicological research now credits the work to Christian Petzold.
Despite its modest length and technical accessibility, this minuet introduces several important Classical-era concepts:
- elegant and balanced phrasing
- a clear two-voice texture, with melodic interest in both hands
- light ornamentation, including mordents
- expressive use of dynamics rather than pure virtuosity
For late-beginner to early-intermediate students, it’s a deceptively rich piece—one that rewards careful listening more than sheer finger speed.
My Practice Notes
I had already started learning this piece a little before beginning my online piano lessons, so my teacher chose it as the first Classical-style work we would study together. When I worked on it alone, I could play all the notes reasonably well—but that was about it. My phrasing was flat, dynamics were inconsistent, and I was completely avoiding the ornaments.
Once lessons started, we began breaking the piece apart in a much more deliberate way. One of the main things my teacher insisted on was practicing hands separately, with real attention to each musical line. This turned out to be far more challenging than I expected—especially playing only the left hand. I had unconsciously associated “melody” almost exclusively with the right hand, so isolating the left forced me to truly listen to its shape and direction.
Working this way helped me understand how the two voices coexist throughout the piece. Later, when putting the hands back together, I felt much more in control of balance and phrasing. Even though the process was uncomfortable at times, it paid off with a clearer sense of structure and intention.
For this recorded performance, I also experimented with adding a bit of pedal in selected spots. I’m not fully satisfied yet—I think I overused it in a few places—but I still prefer the slight warmth it adds compared to playing the piece completely dry. With better pedal control and cleaner mordents, I feel I’m getting close to what I’d personally call a “complete” performance. I’ll keep refining it.
🎹 Gear Used
- Piano: Casio Celviano AP-270
- Sound: MIDI recorded and rendered with XLN Addictive Keys
Final Thoughts
Revisiting a minuet at this stage of my journey felt very different from my earlier attempts. This time, the focus wasn’t on “getting through the piece,” but on listening, shaping phrases, and understanding how both hands contribute musically.
It’s a great reminder that progress on the piano isn’t always about tackling harder repertoire—sometimes it’s about going deeper into simpler music and learning to hear it more clearly.
If you’ve studied this minuet before, did you struggle with balance and ornaments as well?
Feel free to share your experience—I always enjoy comparing notes with fellow adult learners.
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