[6/11/2011] Gotta dance -- Bach the suite-maker, Part 2 (continued)

Also on our list for tonight is the courante. Here Ton Koopman leads the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra in the Courante from Bach's Orchestral Suite No. 1 (which we'll hear again in a moment).


Believe it or not, I'm not going to say anything more. The music is there for the listening. I could say something about the choice of movements for presentation (somewhere between carefully purposeful and random), and I could say something about the odd assortment of performances, which is highly illogical but is simply designed to approach this music from a bunch of different angles. For example, it's my experience that the many keyboard suites have been largely appropriated by (inauthentic) pianists, being not much performed by harpsichordists, for reasons that I think will make sense from our couple of harpsichord examples -- though again, Igor Kipnis and Helmut Walcha are very different sorts of harpsichordists and musicians.

That said, on with the music!

ALLEMANDE

The allemande originated in the 16th century (Renaissance) as a duple metre dance of moderate tempo, derived from dances supposed to be favored in Germany at the time. . . . French composers of the 17th century experimented with the allemande, shifting to quadruple meter and ranging more widely in tempo. The form of the allemande was used for the tombeau. Other identifying features include an upbeat of one or occasionally three sixteenth notes, the absence of syncopation, its combination of short motivic scraps into larger units, and its tonal and motivic contrasts. German composers like Froberger and Bach followed suit in their allemandes for keyboard instruments, although ensemble allemandes tended to stay in a more traditional form. Italian and English composers were more free with the allemande, writing in counterpoint and using a variety of tempi (Corelli wrote allemandes ranging from largo to presto).

The allemande was traditionally regarded as a rather serious dance; in his Musikalisches Lexicon (Leipzig, 1732), Johann Gottfried Walther wrote that the allemande "must be composed and likewise danced in a grave and ceremonious manner." Likewise, in Der Vollkommene Capellmeister (Hamburg, 1739), Johann Mattheson described the allemande as "a serious and well-composed harmoniousness in arpeggiated style, expressing satisfaction or amusement, and delighting in order and calm." -- Wikipedia

Partita for Solo Violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002:
No. 1a, Allemande
No. 1b, Double
Yehudi Menuhin, violin. EMI, recorded in Paris, Dec. 19, 1935
Nathan Milstein, violin. DG, recorded in London, 1973

English Suite No. 4 in F, BWV 809:
No. 2, Allemande
Helmut Walcha, harpsichord. EMI, recorded c1960-61
Marcelle Meyer, piano. EMI, recorded May 13, 1949

Suite for Lute in E minor, BWV 996:
No. 2, Allemande
Robert Hill, lute. Hänssler Classics, recorded Sept. 28-30, 1998

BONUS ALLEMANDE

The E minor Lute Suite from which we heard the Allemande above was actually written for the lute. The G minor Suite, BWV 996, is Bach's own adaptation -- his autograph manuscript survives -- of the Fifth Cello Suite. This Allemande is a lovely discursive, meditative piece, and I thought it might be fun to hear both versions.

Suite for Lute in G minor, BWV 995 (arr. from
Suite for Solo Cello No. 5 in C minor, BWV 1011):
No. 2, Allemande
Narciso Yepes, lute. DG Archiv, recorded in Madrid, 1972-73

Suite for Solo Cello No. 5 in C minor, BWV 1011:
No. 2, Allemande
János Starker, cello. BMG, recorded June 19-24, 1992

COURANTE

The French form courante and the Italian corrente were sometimes used as mere variant spellings, but sometimes indicated different forms.

Courante literally means running, and in the later Renaissance the courante was danced with fast running and jumping steps, as described by Thoinot Arbeau. In Der vollkommene Capellmeister (Hamburg, 1739), Johann Mattheson wrote that, "The motion of a courante is chiefly characterized by the passion or mood of sweet expectation. For there is something heartfelt, something longing and also gratifying, in this melody: clearly music on which hopes are built." The courante was most commonly used in the baroque period. During this period, there were two types of courante: French and Italian. In a Baroque dance suite, an Italian or French courante typically comes between the allemande and the sarabande, making it the second or third movement. The French type is usually notated in 3/2 or 6/4, occasionally alternating between the two meters; the Italian type, on the other hand, is a significantly faster dance. In the Musicalisches Lexicon (Leipzig, 1732), Johann Gottfried Walther wrote that the rhythm of the courante is "absolutely the most serious one can find." -- Wikipedia

Suite for Solo Cello No. 1 in G, BWV 1007:
No. 3, Courante
János Starker, cello. BMG, recorded June 19-24, 1992

Suite for Orchestra No. 1 in C, BWV 1066:
No. 2, Courante
Marlboro Festival Orchestra, Pablo Casals, cond. Columbia/CBS/Sony, recorded 1966

French Suite No. 5 in G, BWV 816:
No. 2, Courante
Edward Aldwell, piano. Hänssler Classics, recorded June 1997


On the eight-string guitar César Amaro plays the Courante from the G minor Lute Suite, which as noted above is Bach's own arrangement of the Cello Suite No. 5. (We heard both versions of the Allemande.)

GIGUE

The gigue (French) or giga (Italian) is a lively baroque dance originating from the British jig. It was imported into France in the mid-17th century and usually appears at the end of a suite. The gigue was probably never a court dance, but it was danced by nobility on social occasions and several court composers wrote gigues. In early English theater, it was customary to end a play's performance with a gigue, complete with music and dancing. A gigue is usually in 3/8 or in one of its compound meter derivatives, such as 6/8, 6/4, 9/8 or 12/16, although there are some gigues written in other meters (for example, the gigue from Bach's first French Suite (BWV 812), which is written in 4/4). They often have a contrapuntal texture. It often has accents on the third beats in the bar, making the gigue a lively folk dance. -- Wikipedia

Partita for Keyboard Solo No. 4 in D, BWV 828:
No. 7, Gigue
Igor Kipnis, harpsichord. EMI, recorded c1976
Glenn Gould, piano. Columbia/CBS/Sony, recorded 1962-63

Suite for Solo Cello No. 6 in D, BWV 1012:
No. 6, Gigue
János Starker, cello. BMG, recorded June 19-24, 1992

Overture in the French Style in B minor, BWV 831:
No. 6a, Gigue
No. 6b, Echo
Yevgeny Koroliov, piano. Hänssler Classics, recorded Sept. 27-Oct. 1, 1999
Glenn Gould, piano. Columbia/CBS/Sony, recorded Jan.-Feb. 1971 and Nov. 5, 1973


Here, on a standard guitar, Oman Kaminsky plays the Gigue from the E minor Lute Suite, D. 996 (which, you'll recall, unlike 995, was actually written for the lute; we also heard the Allemande from D. 996).


TOMORROW IN PART 3 OF "BACH THE SUITE-MAKER"

We take a quick poke at the one regularly used non-dance element in Bach's suites, the prelude (or sinfonia or overture), and then move on to an actual whole suite!


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