Bach - Partita no. 1 for solo violin BWV 1002 (1/2)

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Partita No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002

1. Allemande
2. (4:28) Double
3. (6:25) Corrente

Arthur Grumiaux, violin

This partita substitutes a Bourrée (marked Tempo di Borea) for the gigue, and each movement is followed by variations called double in French.

The Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin (BWV 1001-1006) are a set of six works composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. They consist of three sonatas da chiesa, in four movements, and three partitas, in dance-form movements.

The set was completed by 1720, but was only published in 1802 by Nicolaus Simrock in Bonn. Even after publication, it was largely ignored until the celebrated violinist Josef Joachim started performing these works. Today, Bach's Sonatas and Partitas are an essential part of the violin repertoire, and they are frequently performed and recorded.

The Sei Solo a violino senza Basso accompagnato, as Bach titled them, firmly established the technical capability of the violin as a solo instrument. The pieces often served as an archetype for solo violin pieces for the following generations of composers, including, but not limited to, Eugène Ysaÿe, Béla Bartók, and Paul Hindemith.

Bach started composing these works around 1703, while at Weimar, and the set was completed by 1720, when Bach was a Kapellmeister in Köthen. He was almost certainly inspired by Johann Paul von Westhoff's partitas for solo violin, for he worked alongside Westhoff at Weimar, and the older composer's pieces share some stylistic similarities to Bach's. Solo violin repertoire was actively growing at the time: Heinrich Ignaz Biber's celebrated solo passacaglia appeared c.1676, Westhoff's collections of solo violin music were published in 1682 and 1696, Johann Joseph Vilsmayr's Artificiosus Concentus pro Camera in 1715, and finally, Johann Georg Pisendel's solo violin sonata was composed around 1716. The tradition of writing for solo violin did not die after Bach, either; Georg Philipp Telemann published 12 Fantasias for solo violin in 1735.

The tradition of polyphonic violin writing was already well-developed in Germany, particularly by Biber, Johann Heinrich Schmelzer, and the composers of the so-called Dresden school - Johann Jakob Walther and Westhoff. Bach's Weimar and Köthen periods were particularly suitable times for composition of secular music, for he worked as court musician. Bach's cello and orchestral suites date from the Köthen period, as well as the famous Brandenburg concertos and many other well-known collections of instrumental music.

It is not known whether Bach's works were performed during his lifetime, or, if they were, who was the performer. Johann Georg Pisendel and Jean-Baptiste Volumier, both talented violinists in the Dresden court, have been suggested as possible performers, as was Joseph Speiss, leader of the orchestra in Köthen. Friedrich Wilhelm Rust, who would later become part of the Bach family circle in Leipzig, also became a likely candidate. Bach himself also possibly gave the first performance. According to his son Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, "in his youth, and until the approach of old age, he played the violin cleanly and powerfully".

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Bach
• Partita
• no
• for
• solo
• violin
• BWV
• 1002

[khushy1990]

too much of vibrato !! and too strong....

[StradAmatiViolin]

@khushy1990 Well I agree and but I still is good but I too don't like the really fast vibrato but anyway I can't do anything about it but enjoy it. :D

[bartje11]

@StradAmatiViolin I disagree. I love it. That's why I posted it. Grumiaux is just fabulous. To critcize such a fine, eloquent and virtuoso Master is just plain old ridiculous. Thanks for visiting.

[StradAmatiViolin]

@bartje11 I'm sorry I'm not trying to criticize I'm just letting my opinion out on the vibrato but then again I'm used to it now and I kind of like it but sophie mutters will always be extremely fast I like clean vibrato like even can't describe it I need your opinion.

[bartje11]

@StradAmatiViolin I didn't intend to answer too harhly, but I get very defensive quickly due to negative comments made by people who can't do anything themselves besides being an (amateur) critic. It took me also some time to realise what a great performer Grumiaux was. He comes from that strong Belgian Ysaye school. Thanks for your reply!

[bartje11]

@khushy1990 Bach was known for his strong violin playing. Grumiaux is right-on here. As he was almost always. Fabulous player. Arthur Grumiaux RIP

[Strefanasha]

Of course the man who wrote this, J S Bach, of course, HE WAS THE GREATEST OF THEM ALL.

[thatrabbitvideo]

Thankyou Johaan Sebastian Bach!!

The music of the napoleon of crime!!

[phone8667250]

i'd bet my last food stamp all you guys are looking down at the screen because your chin is so high

[DarkRebelionOrder]

it's beautiful and calming

[aedo67]

lol, youtube it's a wonderful place: Grumiaux,a player with too much vibrato...

[KitKat1395]

@fiandrhi Thaank you. :) I love baroque music, but I'm still learning my musical terms. :)

[fiandrhi]

@KitKat1395 Allemande doesn't mean to play slowly, but allemandes are often at a moderate tempo. The allemande was one of the required (as opposed to optional) dances included in Baroque suites. It was frequently the first movement. Its character is usually blithe and sweet. 

[fiandrhi]

@bartje11 "but I get very defensive quickly due to negative comments made by people who can't do anything themselves besides being an (amateur) critic" I think everyone is entitled to an opinion, even if they can do nothing but listen. But I agree that people often ridiculously dismiss musicians without any apparent appreciation for the extreme effort required to do what they do.

[frederickgauss]

@khushy1990 Que gil.