- Orchestral Suites (Bach)
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The four Orchestral Suites or Ouvertures BWV 1066–1069 are a set of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach, probably composed between 1725 and 1739 in Leipzig. The word overture refers to an opening movement in which a section of slow dotted-note rhythm is followed by a fugue; at the time, this name was also used to refer to a whole suite of dance-pieces in the French baroque style.
Contents
Suite No. 1 in C major, BWV 1066
Instrumentation: Oboe I/II, bassoon, violin I/II, viola, basso continuo
Suite No. 2 in B minor, BWV 1067
Instrumentation: Solo flute, violin I/II, viola, basso continuo
The badinerie has become a show-piece for solo flautists, due to its quick pace and difficulty.
Suite No. 3 in D major, BWV 1068
Instrumentation: Trumpet I/II/III, timpani, oboe I/II, violin I/II, viola, basso continuo
The Air is one of the most famous pieces of baroque music. An arrangement of the piece by German violinist August Wilhelmj (1845–1908) has come to be known as Air on the G String.
Suite No. 4 in D major, BWV 1069
- Ouverture
- Bourrée I/II
- Gavotte
- Menuet I/II
- Réjouissance
Instrumentation: Trumpet I/II/III, timpani, oboe I/II/III, bassoon, violin I/II, viola, basso continuo
The opening movement of this suite was reused by Bach as the choral opening to his cantata Unser Mund sei voll Lachens, BWV 110. The voices come in at the opening of the fugal gigue, so that their singing of Lachen (laughter) sounds like "ha ha ha", a technique Bach used a few times in his vocal works.
External links
- Orchestral Suite No. 1: Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project.
- Orchestral Suite No. 2: Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project.
- Orchestral Suite No. 3: Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project.
- Orchestral Suite No. 4: Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project.
- Orchestral Suite No. 1, Orchestral Suite No. 2, Orchestral Suite No. 3 and Orchestral Suite No. 4 Werner Icking Music Archive directories for MIDIs, PDFs of the Orchestral suites
- Orchestral Suites for piano four hands (Max Reger), mp3
Categories:- Suites by Johann Sebastian Bach
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