Zweig MS 3

Copy in the hand of Christian Gottlob Meissner. Written in brown ink on systems of two staves, using soprano and bass clefs. On a single leaf, with BWV 631a on the recto and BWV 632 on the verso; the titles are given in the upper margins, that of BWV 632 followed by ‘Canon:’ perhaps in another hand. Repeated section of BWV 632 marked by a sign. Pedal part in both preludes is written on the lower stave with downward note-stems, marked in BWV 631a by ‘Ped’ and in BWV 632 by ‘Zp’.

The preludes are numbered 32 and 33 in an apparently later hand. The pages numbered 1 (on verso) and 2 (on recto) in red. At bottom left of verso over blank staves at the end of ‘Herr Jesu Christ’, in the hand of Clara Schumann: ‘Handschrift von J.S. Bach. / (Von Mendelssohn’s Frau geschenkt)’.

Meissner’s copies were for long considered to be Bach’s autograph. In the preface to his edition Mendelssohn writes ‘Of the 44 Short Preludes, I am fortunate enough to possess [Bach’s] own manuscript with the exception of but a few pages’; Zweig acquired the present leaf from the Schumann album as an autograph.

The date of the presentation of Zweig MS 3 to the Schumanns is not known; Mendelssohn used copies from the Meissner manuscript in preparing his edition, and it is not clear why BWV 631a is not included. On his record card Zweig attributed the inscription by Clara Schumann on the verso of this manuscript to Robert Schumann.