Bach’s Sonata No. 3 in C Major, BWV 1005, Largo: Christian Tetzlaff

When it comes to J.S. Bach’s six Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin (BWV 1001-1006), we are never done learning. Once you begin to play and study this timeless, awe-inspiring music, new details reveal themselves continuously, in unending layers. An intrinsic part of the violin repertoire, the collection includes Baroque dances, three fugues, and a monumental chaconne. Bach gave multi-voice counterpoint to an instrument that is primarily associated with single melodic lines. …

Read more

Leonidas Kavakos Plays Bach: Sonata No. 3 in C Major, Adagio and Fuga

The Greek violinist Leonidas Kavakos describes J.S. Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin (BWV 1001–1006) as “the most perfect music ever written.” The violin is an instrument which is usually associated with a single, singing melodic line. Yet Bach’s six suites open the door to a magical polyphonic world in which a single violin can create multiple voices. This counterpoint is especially vivid in the three fugues (included in the Sonatas) and the D …

Read more