
Tuesday, June 6 / 5:00 p.m. / Corpus Christi Chapel
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH III
Johann Sebastian Bach: Sonatas for Solo Violin, BWV 1001 – 1006
Milan Pala – violin
Sonata No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001
I. Adagio
II. Fuga (Allegro)
III. Siciliana
IV. Presto
Sonata No. 2 in A minor, BWV 1003
I. Grave
II. Fuga
III. Andante
IV. Allegro
Sonata No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005
I. Adagio
II. Fuga
III. Largo
IV. Allegro assai
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The centuries that have passed since the time of Johann Sebastian Bach have witnessed a constant development of the way his works have been interpreted. Even given the knowledge of the whole sum of rules governing historically informed performance, there exists no single, universally codified model of interpretation. Ever again, each musician is bound to constantly reassess their own approach to responding to the composer´s message while at the same time making his own creative imprint on their individual reading. Of course, this also fully applies for Bach´s Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin. These are works of enormous technical complexity – at places here, the composer expects the soloist to handle the polyphony of several instruments. With only the violin´s four strings at his disposal, Bach achieves true harmonic exuberance springing from both real acoustic tones, and ones that are instinctively felt. Soon enough, violinists became aware that this kind of polyphony is better attained with a baroque bow than with a modern one. Bach´s three sonatas, each alternating with a partita, are composed in the Baroque four-movement sonata form.
sleeve-note: Dita Hradecká / translation: Ivan Vomáčka