Ferruccio Busoni, like the composer/pianist he greatly admired and championed Franz Liszt, made many transcriptions of works by other composers. Busoni fashioned numerous piano arrangements of compositions by Beethoven, Spohr, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Wagner, Weill, and others. While Busoni also transcribed many works by Liszt, it was J.S. Bach whose compositions drew the most attention from him. Whole sets of keyboards works were transcribed, including both books of the Well-Tempered Klavier, the 18 Short Preludes and Fughetta, and the Ten Chorale Preludes (BWV 639).

No. 5 from the Ten Chorale Preludes has become quite popular in Busoni's arrangement. Horowitz, Grigory Sokolov, Bernd Glemser, and numerous other pianists have made notable recordings of it. The music is serene and stately in its slow pacing, Busoni imparting a Romantic air to the lovely but somber theme. The gentle accompaniment in the left hand, although not made of repeating triplet figurations, is at times reminiscent of the tender rocking accompaniment heard throughout the opening movement of the Beethoven "Moonlight" Sonata. That said, it is emotionally cooler than the Beethoven, tinged with a strong sense of religious devotion; the full title from the Bach original is, after all, Ich ruf' zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ (I call to you, Lord Jesus Christ).

Lasting about three minutes, this piece is a lovely transcription that transports the Baroque religious serenity of the Bach organ original to the post-Romantic age, where its music is clothed in warm, idiomatic piano sonorities.

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