Simply mention the hit video game Tetris to someone who has played it, and they will instantly think about the catchy music that accompanies the game. In this game, the player organizes blocks into (hopefully) organized stacks. The music of Johann Sebastian Bach is similar, in that he often takes a small musical idea (motif) and turns it into a building block out of which he builds an entire piece – much like building a house entirely out of tiny Legos.

Anyone who has played Tetris knows the main theme music (Music A), but for those more adventurous types who chose the B or C music, you might recognize the Minuet (jump to 11:35) from Bach’s French Suite in b minor. Many of the movements of this suite are built on small motivic ideas, which, when stacked correctly on top of each other, can create magnificent structures.

I’m usually a morning person, but some days it’s just hard. A little music can usually turn the day around – Johann Sebastian Bach‘s Harpsichord Concerti always do the trick.

What’s the secret to this piece’s ‘get-up-and-go’ attitude? Constant 16th-note motion. Throughout the piece, there is nearly always a voice in the ensemble which has moving 16th-notes, which gives the piece a constant rhythmic drive. The negative effect of this has earned this style of baroque music the nickname ‘typewriter music.’