ABSTRACT
One of the characteristics of Bach’s musical output is the existence of several versions of a single composition. Such versions appear in a variety of genres, ranging from small two-part clavier pieces, such as the Invention in C major, to grandiose instrumental and choral works and cycle organisation, such as the Inventions and Sinfonias, a number of cantatas, St John Passion and the Mass in B minor, to mention just a few. This procedure is so common that it may be regarded as typical to Bach’s creative process. These versions are not parodies, where the same musical material of one composition is used for another (as happened in the case of the second part of the cantata BWV 12, Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen, that was reused in the Crucixus of the Mass in B minor), but a creation of dierent versions of one and the same work. Moreover, a version usually emerged once the composition of the previous one had been completed.
