The Baroque fugue was an important art form in music. Mastering the fugue meant the ultimate test as a composer. It is both an exercise in mathematics and art. These pieces had a central theme, short and often flexible. This theme was then examined, turned and twisted in variations, and put against opposing themes. All of this followed strict compositional guidelines. Bach was the absolute master in the fugue.
On this record is an ensemble version for six players, of fugues by Bach. The title implies this is his enormous werk of that title (The art of the fugue), but it is not. It contains arranged fragments, ordered in sets of similar fugues.
I got this as a present from a friend. He was it on the street. It might have been left there by one of the musicians on the album, because it was not alone: with it were ten others of the same album. Probably copies given to the artists for promotion. Or maybe the album didn’t sell and they got what was left. Or maybe both, who knows.