The passacaglia, which originated as a strummed improvisation, took on a serious nature in the works of the German masters. This is the case with Johann Kaspar Kerll, who composed very technical demanding pieces that circulated throughout Europe. This seriousness was also present in the works of Max Reger, who paid tribute to Bach and his Passacaglia in C minor, BWV 582 with this Introduction and Passacaglia in D minor. The work was published in 1900 as part of an album in aid of new organ that was being constructed in Schönberg, in central Germany.