The exposition ends at the beginning of the seventh bar. The two bars that follow have hardly enough distinct character to constitute an episode; they are rather a kind of codetta—a prolongation of the exposition, leading up to a half close, to introduce the counter-exposition. Here we see (§ 207) that the voices which before had the subject (the bass and alto) now have the answer, while the tenor and treble have the subject; we also see the entries in a rather close stretto. It looks at first as if the introduction of a close stretto so early in the fugue were premature; but Bach has other devices in reserve for the later part of this fugue, as we shall see presently.
270. In the 31st fugue of the same work, the counter-exposition contains a canonic imitation in stretto, first between tenor and bass, and then between alto and treble. We quote the passage; the subject and answer of the fugue were given in § 88.
J. S. Bach. Wohltemperirtes Clavier, Fugue 31.
![\new ChoirStaff << \override Score.Rest #'style = #'classical \override Score.BarNumber #'break-visibility = #'#(#f #f #f)
\new Staff \relative b' { \key ees \major \time 2/2
bes4 d8 ees f4 d | bes ees8 f g4 ees | f ees8 d c4 d |
ees r r2 | R1*4 \[ ees1^"S" bes'2 r4 aes | g c2 bes4 |
aes aes8 g aes4 c | f, bes2 aes4 | g g8 f g4 bes | ees, \] }
\new Staff \relative d' { \clef alto \key ees \major
d4 f8 g aes2 ~ | aes4 g8 aes bes4 g | f bes aes bes |
bes, r4 r2 | R1*3 \clef treble | \[ bes'1^"A" ees2 r4 ees |
d g2 f4 | ees ees8 d ees4 g | c, f2 ees4 |
d4 d8 c d4 f | bes, \] bes8 aes bes4 d | g,_"&c." }
\new Staff \relative b { \clef tenor \key ees \major
bes2 \[ bes^"A" ees r4 ees | d g2 f4 | ees ees8 d ees4 g |
c, f2 ees4 | d d8 c d4 f | bes, \] bes8 aes bes4 d |
g,2 g' ~ | g4 g8 f g4 a | bes d,8 c d4 f | g g8 f g2 ~ |
g4 c, f2 ~ | f4 f8 ees f2 ~ | f4 bes, ees r | r }
\new Staff \relative b, { \clef bass \key ees \major
bes2 r | r \[ ees^"S" | bes' r4 aes | g c2 bes4 |
aes aes8 g aes4 c | f, bes2 aes4 | g g8 f g4 bes |
ees, \] ees8 d ees4 g | c,2 c' | bes4 bes8 aes bes4 d |
ees2 r4 e | f f,8 e f4 a | bes2 r4 d | ees ees, ees'8 d c bes | c4 } >>](http://upload.wikimedia.org/score/5/p/5pep6ai7qxldneqzrc2pcudu2g5pah9/5pep6ai7.png)
