Prelude and Fugue No. 2 follows many of the traditions created by Bach, but develops them with a 21st century language. Inspired by the writings of Shostakovich, Daniel Farrell develops a Prelude and Fugue pair that share a common motivic idea. The Prelude features harmonic ambiguity and introduces several ideas to be found within the Fugue. The Fugue is a four voice, double fugue infused with chromatic saturation and a tonal language at home within the 21st century. The slower middle section introduces the second fugue subject, while the first fugue subject, in retrograde, becomes the new countersubject. The two subjects are featured in stretto at the end of the piece in a dramatic finish.