Bach, Brandenburg Concerto #6, first movement (animation ver. 4)

The first movement of Bach's sixth (and last) Brandenburg Concerto, BWV 1051, accompanied by an animated score. This concerto is unusual in that the highest-pitched instruments in the ensemble are two solo violas.

FAQ

Q: Where can I get free sheet music for this piece?
A: Here:
http://tinyurl.com/bwv1051

Q: Who is playing this piece?
A: The violists are Elias Goldstein & Elizabeth Choi, and the solo violoncellist is Anna Steinhoff; they are playing with the Advent Chamber Orchestra. I got this recording from the Wikimedia Commons:
http://tinyurl.com/brand6mvt1
This recording is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 License:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

Q: There sure is a lot of audience noise in this ... coughing, baby crying ...
A: Yes, there is. That might have been part of why this recording was put in the Wikimedia Commons.

Q: I don't like this version of the animation as much as others I've seen ...
A: I've posted several versions of this, including ...
... balls without stretching (version 1) ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoOr1jHWMzQ
... balls with stretching (version 2) ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KDoz-7IHI4
... bars (version 3) ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mR8LrZBg02k
... balls with stretching (version 4) ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kj1VvTTTO7Q
... balls with stretching (version 4 with white background) ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE73YEmP5rE

Q: It sure is hard to watch this.
A: Yes, but it may help to know this: at the beginning (and the other places that are like the beginning), the two violas (the highest instruments) are playing the same thing, offset in time by one eighth-note; so it's like a really quick echo.

Q: Is there a way I could make the bar-graph scores myself?
A: The Music Animation Machine MIDI file player will generate this display; you can get the (Windows) software here:
http://www.musanim.com/player/
There are lots of places on the web where you can get MIDI files; I usually go to the Classical Archives site first:
http://www.classicalarchives.com/

Q: Could you please do a MAM video of _________?
A: Please read this::
http://www.musanim.com/all/MAMRequests.html
.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• baroque
• chamber
• viola

[dagorlad3]

I've got to say, this is my favorite version of Brandenburg Concerto #6. I'm curious as to where I can get the mp3's of some of these performances, the ones I have are lousy (either clapping included or mediocre performance).

[smalin]

@dagorlad3 What's wrong with clapping?

[dagorlad3]

@smalin, well unfortunately the clapping is at a significantly higher volume than some of the quieter pieces, resulting in bleeding (an exaggeration) ears if i don't turn my headphones down.

[smalin]

@dagorlad3 Ah, yes, I can see how that would be a problem.

[BigBiff88]

@smalin whats right with it?

[smalin]

@IkranAhiyik At the moment, it's just me.  Next year it might be different. We'll see.

[IkranAhiyik]

@smalin I see this. So I guess there's no one or only a few besides you can do this?

[smalin]

@IkranAhiyik The exact effect used here is not in the freeware version of the software that I released many years ago.

[IkranAhiyik]

These balls are very great when there are several single-note voices. But the thing I would like to ask is that, is this style of animation only can be done by you? Or there's actually a way to make the screen into like this by the program you released to us? The 2 major differents: acceleration of lines and balls, and darken the balls (somewhere other) make this special. The one available on the program is still very good, but not as good as this one. Thanks for making these tons of videos..

[smalin]

@Phlincke Here, "solo" refers to the fact that a part is only played by one person (and is meant to be perceived as separate from the orchestra). Same for singers; for example, the four singers in Beethoven's 9th symphony that are not part of the chorus are referred to as "the soloists" even though they often sing together.