Post by erik on Mar 4, 2023 20:33:12 GMT -5
Johann Sebastian Bach is in this week's Classical Works Spotlight with the third of the six Brandenburg concertos he composed in 1721.
Bach: BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 3 IN G MAJOR, BWV 1048
Besides being a towering figure in both Western music history in general, and the Baroque era in particular, Johann Sebastian Bach was an extremely savvy and innovative composer as well. During the year 1721, he composed a series of what he called “concertos for various instruments” that he presented to Christian Ludwig, the Margrave of Brandenburg-Schweidt, hoping for a court appointment or a possible commission. Unfortunately, the Margrave lacked the musicians in his Berlin ensemble to perform what were to become known as the Brandenburg Concertos, mostly because King Frederick William I of Prussia wasn’t exactly a significant patron of the arts. The manuscripts for all six of those works were left in the Margrave’s library, unseen until Christian Ludwig died in 1734, when the manuscripts were sold for a mere $24. Fortunately, they survived to see a revival of Baroque music during the 20th century; and all six remain fixtures of orchestras all around the world, both modern and period-instrument alike. The third of these, in G Major, opens up with one of the most familiar melodies in all of classical music, very much structured in Bach’s complex style, followed by a slow movement (in E Minor), and then a return to the home key of G Major for the Allegro finale. Its scoring was originally for a trio each of violins, violas, and cellos (where it remains in chamber music form); but in modern times, it is usually performed by the string sections of orchestras, with the harpsichord used as a basso continuo instrument. The work would prove to be influential with later Classical-era composers such as Mozart and Haydn; and it would find an even larger audience after Stravinsky’s neo-Classical efforts, some modeled off Bach, brought it into the 20th century.
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra/GERARD SCHWARZ (EMI)
Included):
BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 1 IN F MAJOR, BWV 1046
BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 2 IN F MAJOR, BWV 1047
BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 4 IN G MAJOR, BWV 1049
Bach: BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 3 IN G MAJOR, BWV 1048
Besides being a towering figure in both Western music history in general, and the Baroque era in particular, Johann Sebastian Bach was an extremely savvy and innovative composer as well. During the year 1721, he composed a series of what he called “concertos for various instruments” that he presented to Christian Ludwig, the Margrave of Brandenburg-Schweidt, hoping for a court appointment or a possible commission. Unfortunately, the Margrave lacked the musicians in his Berlin ensemble to perform what were to become known as the Brandenburg Concertos, mostly because King Frederick William I of Prussia wasn’t exactly a significant patron of the arts. The manuscripts for all six of those works were left in the Margrave’s library, unseen until Christian Ludwig died in 1734, when the manuscripts were sold for a mere $24. Fortunately, they survived to see a revival of Baroque music during the 20th century; and all six remain fixtures of orchestras all around the world, both modern and period-instrument alike. The third of these, in G Major, opens up with one of the most familiar melodies in all of classical music, very much structured in Bach’s complex style, followed by a slow movement (in E Minor), and then a return to the home key of G Major for the Allegro finale. Its scoring was originally for a trio each of violins, violas, and cellos (where it remains in chamber music form); but in modern times, it is usually performed by the string sections of orchestras, with the harpsichord used as a basso continuo instrument. The work would prove to be influential with later Classical-era composers such as Mozart and Haydn; and it would find an even larger audience after Stravinsky’s neo-Classical efforts, some modeled off Bach, brought it into the 20th century.
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra/GERARD SCHWARZ (EMI)
Included):
BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 1 IN F MAJOR, BWV 1046
BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 2 IN F MAJOR, BWV 1047
BRANDENBURG CONCERTO NO. 4 IN G MAJOR, BWV 1049