The Sonata in G minor (K. 30, L. 499) by Domenico Scarlatti, better known by its affectionate moniker “The Cat Fugue,” is a unique single-movement work for the harpsichord. Its whimsical title did not originate from Scarlatti himself but was rather coined in the early 1800s, drawing inspiration from an anecdote about the composer’s creative process.
The story goes that Scarlatti owned a curious cat named Pulcinella, who had a habit of traipsing across the harpsichord keys, seemingly fascinated by the sounds it produced. It’s said that during one of these feline musical explorations, Scarlatti captured a melodic line produced by his pet’s paws and used this as the principal theme for the fugue.
Listen to the sonata in the video below:
By the 19th century, this piece gained popularity and was frequently featured in concert programs. Celebrated composers and musicians such as Muzio Clementi, Carl Czerny, and Alessandro Longo were known to publish and perform this work under its feline-inspired title.
The influence of “The Cat Fugue” reached various composers across the centuries. Published in London in the year 1739, it may have left its mark on the work of George Frideric Handel, specifically the peculiar descending intervals found in the second movement of Handel’s Concerti grossi, Op. 6, composed in the same year. Additionally, Anton Reicha acknowledged the piece by crafting his own fugue on the identical motif for his collection titled “36 Fugues” in 1803.
In the early 20th century, the American composer Amy Beach created a Fantasia fugata, Op. 87, using a cat-inspired theme, paying homage to Scarlatti’s work. She even credited her own pet cat, Hamlet, for the musical theme, hoping he might follow in the paw prints of Scarlatti’s Pulcinella.
“The Cat Fugue” continued to captivate audiences into the 19th century, with virtuosos like Franz Liszt and Ignaz Moscheles incorporating it into their repertoires after being introduced to the piece by manuscript collector Fortunato Santini. These performances solidified the piece’s standing in the classical music canon and continued to celebrate its unique origin story.