View source for Orchestral suites (Bach)

{{Short description|Four suites by Johann Sebastian Bach}}
[[File:Bach suite 2.JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|Bach's autograph of the [[traverso|traversière]] part of the second orchestral suite (BWV&nbsp;1067)]]
The four '''orchestral suites''' [[Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis|BWV]] 1066–1069 (called '''''ouvertures''''' by their composer) are four [[Suite (music)|suite]]s by [[Johann Sebastian Bach]] from the years 1724–1731. The name ''ouverture'' refers only in part to the opening movement in the style of the [[French overture]], in which a majestic opening section in relatively slow [[Dotted note|dotted-note]] rhythm in [[Duple and quadruple metre|duple meter]] is followed by a fast [[fugal]] section, then rounded off with a short recapitulation of the opening music. More broadly, the term was used in Baroque Germany for a suite of dance-pieces in French [[Baroque music|Baroque]] style preceded by such an ouverture. This genre was extremely popular in [[Germany]] during Bach's day, and he showed far less interest in it than was usual: Robin Stowell writes that "[[Georg Philipp Telemann|Telemann]]'s 135 surviving examples [represent] only a fraction of those he is known to have written";<ref name=RS336>Robin Stowell, "Orchestral suites" in ''Oxford Composer Companions: J.S. Bach'', ed. Malcolm Boyd and [[John Butt (musician)|John Butt]], Oxford University Press, 1999, p. 336</ref> [[List of orchestral suites by Christoph Graupner|Christoph Graupner left 85]]; and [[Johann Friedrich Fasch]] left almost 100. Bach did write several other ouverture (suites) for solo instruments, notably the [[Cello Suites (Bach)|Cello Suite]] no. 5, BWV 1011, which also exists in the autograph [[Lute Suite in G minor, BWV 995]], the [[Partitas for keyboard (Bach)|Keyboard Partita]] no. 4 in D, BWV 828, and the [[Overture in the French style, BWV 831]] for keyboard. The two keyboard works are among the few Bach published, and he prepared the [[lute]] suite for a "Monsieur Schouster", presumably for a fee, so all three may attest to the form's popularity.

Scholars believe that Bach did not conceive of the four orchestral suites as a set (in the way he conceived of the [[Brandenburg Concertos]]), since the sources are various, as detailed below.

The [[Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis]] catalogue includes a fifth suite, [[Orchestral Suite in G minor, BWV 1070|BWV 1070 in G minor]]. However, this work is highly unlikely to have been composed by J. S. Bach.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Faber Pocket Guide to Bach|date=2011|publisher=Faber & Faber|isbn=978-0571272006|page=352}}</ref>

[[Gustav Mahler]] arranged portions of BWV 1067 and 1068 for orchestra, harpsichord, and organ. They were played several times during Mahler's first tour of the New York Philharmonic, with Mahler on harpsichord and [[Harry Benjamin Jepson|Harry Jepson]] on organ.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wagner |first=Mary H. |title=Gustav Mahler and the New York Philharmonic orchestra tour America |date=2006 |publisher=the Scarecrow press |isbn=978-0-8108-5720-9 |location=Lanham (Md.) Toronto Oxford |page=208}}</ref>

==Suite No. 1 in C major, BWV 1066==
{{Listen|type=music
| header       =Overture of Orchestral Suite No.&nbsp;1, BWV&nbsp;1066, performed by [[Busch Quartet|The Adolf Busch Chamber Players]] conducted by [[Adolf Busch]] (1930s monaural recording)
| filename     =PDP-CH - Busch Chamber Players - Suite No. 1 in C major, BWV 1066, Overture - Bach - Hmv-db3012-2ea3900.flac
| title        = Overture (part 1 of 2)
| alt          = Overture (part 1 of 2)
| description  =
| filename2    =PDP-CH - Adolf Busch Chamber Players - Adolf Busch - Suite No. 1 in C major, BWV 1066 - Overture, Conclusion - Bach - Hmv-db3012-2ea3901.flac
| title2       = Overture (part 2 of 2)
| alt2         = Overture (part 2 of 2)
| description2 =
}}
The source is a set of parts from [[Leipzig]] in 1724–45 copied by C. G. Meissner.<ref name="RS336" />

#[[Overture|Ouverture]] (In [[C major]]. [[Metre (music) | Metrical]] sign of opening section {{music|cuttime}}; metrical sign of fugal section is <math>\boldsymbol{2}\!\!\!|\;</math>)
#[[Courante]] (In C major. Metrical sign of {{music|time|3|2}})
#[[Gavotte]] I/II (In C major. Metrical sign is <math>\boldsymbol{2}\!\!\!|\;</math>)
#[[Forlane]] (In C major. Metrical sign is {{music|time|6|4}})
#[[Minuet|Menuet]] I/II (In C major. Metrical sign is {{music|time|3|4}})
#[[Bourrée]] I/II (Bourrée I in C major & Bourrée II, the middle section, in [[C minor]]. Metrical sign is <math>\boldsymbol{2}\!\!\!|\;</math>)
#[[Passepied]] I/II (In C major. Metrical sign is {{music|time|3|4}})

Instrumentation: [[Oboe]] I/II, [[bassoon]], [[violin]] I/II, [[viola]], [[basso continuo]]

==Suite No. 2 in B minor, BWV 1067==
{{Listen|type=music|help=no
| header       =From Orchestral Suite No.&nbsp;2, BWV&nbsp;1067, performed by [[Marcel Moyse]] (flute) with [[Busch Quartet|The Adolf Busch Chamber Players]] conducted by [[Adolf Busch]] (1930s monaural recording)
| filename     =PDP-CH - Marcel Moyse, flute with The Adolf Busch Chamber Players - Adolf Busch - Suite No. 2 in B minor, BWV 1067 - Bourrée and Polonaise - Hmv-db3017-2ea3910.flac
| title        = Movements 4 (Bourrée I/II) and 5 (Polonaise)
| alt          = Movements 4 (Bourrée I/II) and 5 (Polonaise)
| description  =
| filename2    =PDP-CH - Marcel Moyse, flute with The Adolf Busch Chamber Players - Adolf Busch - Suite No. 2 in B minor, BWV 1067 - Menuet and Badinerie - Hmv-db3017-2ea3911.flac
| title2       = Movements 6 (Minuet) and  7 (Badinerie)
| alt2         = Movements 6 (Minuet) and  7 (Badinerie)
| description2 =
| filename3    = Bach, Johann Sebastian - Suite No.2 in B Minor - X. Badinerie.ogg
| title3       = 7. "Badinerie"
| description3 = From [[Musopen]]
}}
The source is a partially autograph set of parts (Bach wrote out those for flute and viola) from Leipzig in 1738–39.<ref name=RS336 />

#Ouverture (In [[B minor]]. Metrical sign of the opening section is {{music|commontime}}; metrical sign of fugal section is <math>\boldsymbol{2}\!\!\!|\;</math>; metrical sign of ending section, marked Lentement, is {{music|time|3|4}})
#[[Rondo|Rondeau]] – written ''Rondeaux'' by Bach (In B minor. Metrical sign is {{music|cuttime}})
#[[Sarabande]] (In B minor. Metrical sign is {{music|time|3|4}}), with a [[Canon (music)|canon]] at the 12th between the flute (plus first violins) and the bass
#[[Bourrée]] I/II (In B minor. Metrical sign is {{music|cuttime}})
#[[Polonaise]] / Double (In B minor. Metrical sign for both is {{music|time|3|4}}); the flute part is marked "Moderato e staccato" and the first violin part "lentement" (slowly)
#[[Minuet|Menuet]] (In B minor. Metrical sign is {{music|time|3|4}})
#[[Badinerie]] (In B minor. Metrical sign is {{music|time|2|4}}). Bach, in the autograph part, spells this "Battinerie".<ref>Jeanne Swack, "Badinerie" in ''Oxford Composer Companions: J.S. Bach'', ed. Malcolm Boyd and [[John Butt (musician)|John Butt]], Oxford University Press, 1999, p. 58</ref>

Instrumentation: Solo "[Flute] traversière" ([[transverse flute]]), violin I/II, viola, basso continuo.

The Polonaise is a stylization of the [[Music of Poland|Polish folk song]] "Wezmę ja kontusz" (I'll take my nobleman's robe).<ref>[[Adrian Thomas (composer)|Adrian Thomas]]. "Beyond the Dance" in [https://books.google.com/books?id=spdmAgb78xwC ''The Cambridge Companion to Chopin''], [[Cambridge Companions to Music]] No. 3, edited by Jim Samson. [[Cambridge University Press]], 1994. {{ISBN|9780521477529}}, [https://books.google.com/books?id=spdmAgb78xwC&pg=PA146 p. 146]</ref> The ''Badinerie'' (literally "jesting" in French – in other works Bach used the Italian word with the same meaning, [[scherzo]]) has become a showpiece for solo flautists because of its quick pace and difficulty.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Puu|first=Tönu|author-link=Tõnu Puu|title=Arts, Sciences, and Economics: A Historical Safari |publisher=Springer |year=2014 |isbn=978-3662441305 |edition=2nd |page=126}}</ref> For many years in the 1980s and early 1990s the movement was the incidental music for [[ITV Schools]] morning programmes in the UK.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Under siege: Educating the Nation|url=http://bbc.com/historyofthebbc/research/educating-the-nation/|access-date=2021-06-08|website=bbc.com|language=en}}</ref>

===Earlier version in A minor===
[[Joshua Rifkin]] has argued, based on in-depth analysis of the partially autograph primary sources, that this work is based on an earlier version in A minor in which the solo flute part was scored instead for solo violin.<ref>[[Joshua Rifkin]], "The B-Minor Flute Suite Deconstructed" in Gregory Butler (ed.), ''Bach Perspectives, nr 6: J. S. Bach's Concerted Ensemble Music, The Ouverture'' 2007: University of Illinois Press, pp. 1–98, {{ISBN|978-0-252-03042-0}}</ref> Rifkin demonstrates that notational errors in the surviving parts can best be explained by their having been copied from a model a whole tone lower, and that this solo part would venture below the lowest pitches on the flutes Bach wrote for (the [[transverse flute]], which Bach called ''flauto traverso'' or ''flute traversière''). Rifkin argues that the violin was the most likely option, noting that in writing the word "Traversiere" in the solo part, Bach seems to have fashioned the letter T out of an earlier "V", suggesting that he originally intended to write the word "violin" (the page in question can be viewed here, p.&nbsp;6)<ref>Betty Bang Mather and Dean M. Karns, [http://www.presser.com/marketing/newissue/12_06/11441534_Bach_Mather_Overture_Suite.pdf Bach: Overture-Suite in B minor, BWV 1067: Informed Performance Edition](partial) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140314132201/http://www.presser.com/marketing/newissue/12_06/11441534_Bach_Mather_Overture_Suite.pdf |date=2014-03-14 }}</ref> Further, Rifkin notes passages that would have used the violinistic technique of [[bariolage]]. Rifkin also suggests that Bach was inspired to write the suite by a similar work by his second cousin [[Johann Bernhard Bach]].

Flautist Steven Zohn accepts the argument of an earlier version in A minor, but suggests that the original part may have been playable on flute as well as violin.<ref>Steven Zohn, "Bach and the Concert en Ouverture" in Gregory Butler (ed.), ''Bach Perspectives, nr 6: J. S. Bach's Concerted Ensemble Music, The Ouverture'' 2007: University of Illinois Press», pp. 137–156, {{ISBN|978-0-252-03042-0}}</ref>

Oboist [[Gonzalo X. Ruiz]] has argued in detail that the solo instrument in the lost original A minor version was the oboe, and he has recorded it in his own reconstruction of that putative original on a baroque oboe. His case against the violin is that: the range is "curiously limited" for that instrument, "avoiding the G string almost entirely," and that the supposed violin solo would at times be lower in pitch than the first violin part, something that is almost unheard of in dedicated violin concertos. By contrast, "the range is exactly the range of Bach's oboes"; scoring the solo oboe occasionally lower than the first violin was typical Baroque practice, as the oboe still comes through to the ear; and the "figurations are very similar to those found in many oboe works of the period."<ref>[[Gonzalo X. Ruiz]], notes to the CD "Orchestral Suites for a Young Prince," Avie AV2171</ref>

==Suite No. 3 in D major, BWV 1068==
{{Listen|type=music|help=no
| header       =Orchestral Suite No.&nbsp;3, BWV&nbsp;1068, performed by [[Busch Quartet|The Adolf Busch Chamber Players]] conducted by [[Adolf Busch]] (1930s monaural recording)
| filename     =PDP-CH - Adolf Busch Chamber Players - Adolf Busch - Suite No. 3 in D major, BWV 1068 - Overture, Part 1 - Bach - Hmv-db3018-2ea3896.flac
| title        = Overture (part 1 of 2)
| alt          = Overture (part 1 of 2)
| description  =
| filename2    =PDP-CH - Adolf Busch Chamber Players - Adolf Busch - Suite No. 3 in D major, BWV 1068 - Overture, Conclusion - Bach - Hmv-db3018-2ea3897.flac
| title2       = Overture (part 2 of 2)
| alt2         = Overture (part 2 of 2)
| description2 =
| filename3     =PDP-CH - Adolf Busch Chamber Players - Adolf Busch - Suite No. 3 in D major, BWV 1068 - Air - Bach - Hmv-db3019-2ea3895.flac
| title3        = 2. Air
| alt3          = 2. Air
| description3  =
| filename4    =PDP-CH - Adolf Busch Chamber Players - Adolf Busch - Suite No. 3 in D major, BWV 1068 - Gavotte - Bach - Hmv-db3019-2ea3898.flac
| title4       = 3. Gavotte I/II
| alt4         = 3. Gavotte I/II
| description4 =
| filename5    =PDP-CH - Busch Chamber Players - Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D major, BWV1068 - Johann Sebastian Bach - Hmv-db3020-2ea3899.flac
| title5       = 4. Bourrée – 5.&nbsp;Gigue
| alt5         = 4. Bourrée – 5.&nbsp;Gigue
| description5 =
}}
The oldest source is a partially autograph set of parts from around 1730.<ref>[http://www.bachdigital.de/receive/BachDigitalSource_source_00002507?lang=en D-B Mus. ms. Bach St 153, Fascicle 1] at {{url|www.bachdigital.de}}.</ref> Bach wrote out the first violin and continuo parts, [[C. P. E. Bach]] wrote out the trumpet, oboe, and timpani parts, and J. S. Bach's student [[Johann Ludwig Krebs]] wrote out the second violin and viola parts.<ref name=RS336 /> Rifkin has argued that the original was a version for strings and continuo alone.<ref>Joshua Rifkin, "Besetzung – Entstehung – Uberlieferung: Bemerkungen zur Ouverture BWV 1068", ''[[Bach-Jahrbuch]]'', 83 (1997), pp. 169–76.</ref>

#Ouverture (In [[D major]]. Metrical sign is {{music|cuttime}} for the opening section; metrical sign is <math>\boldsymbol{2}</math> fugal section, in which the autograph first violin part is marked "vite" (fast); metrical sign {{music|commontime}} for final section)
#[[Air (music)|Air]] (In [[D major]]. Metrical sign is {{music|commontime}})
#[[Gavotte]] I/II (In [[D major]]. Metrical sign is {{music|cuttime}})
#[[Bourrée]] (In [[D major]]. Metrical sign is {{music|cuttime}})
#[[Gigue]] (In [[D major]]. Metrical sign is {{music|time|6|8}})

Instrumentation: [[Baroque trumpet|Trumpet]] I/II/III, [[timpani]], oboe I/II, violin I/II, viola, basso continuo (second movement: only strings and continuo).<ref>Bach Digital Work {{BDW|1254}} at {{url|www.bachdigital.de}}.</ref>

An arrangement of the second movement of the suite by German violinist [[August Wilhelmj]] (1845–1908) became known as "[[Air on the G String]]".

==Suite No. 4 in D major, BWV 1069==
{{Listen|type=music|help=no
| header       =From Orchestral Suite No.&nbsp;4, BWV&nbsp;1069, performed by [[Busch Quartet|The Adolf Busch Chamber Players]] conducted by [[Adolf Busch]] (1930s monaural recording)
| filename     =PDP-CH - Busch Chamber Players - Orchestral Suite No. 4 in D major, BWV1069 - Johann Sebastian Bach - Hmv-db3020-2ea3890.flac
| title        = First part of the Overture
| alt          = First part of the Overture
| description  =
}}
The source is lost, but the existing parts date from circa 1730.<ref name=RS336 /> Rifkin has argued that the lost original version was written during Bach's tenure at [[Köthen]], did not have trumpets or timpani, and that Bach first added these parts when adapting the Ouverture movement for the choral first movement to his 1725 Christmas [[cantata]] ''[[Unser Mund sei voll Lachens, BWV 110]]'' ("Our mouths be full of laughter").

#[[Overture|Ouverture]] (In [[D major]]. Metrical sign is {{music|commontime}} for the opening section, {{music|time|9|8}} for the fast fugal section)
#[[Bourrée]] I/II (Bourrée I in D major & Bourrée II, the middle section, in [[B minor]]. Metrical sign is {{music|commontime}})
#[[Gavotte]] (In D major. Metrical sign is {{music|commontime}})
#[[Minuet|Menuet]] I/II (In D major. Metrical sign is {{music|time|3|4}})
#Réjouissance (In D major. Metrical sign is {{music|time|3|4}})

Instrumentation: Trumpet I/II/III, timpani, oboe I/II/III, bassoon, violin I/II, viola, basso continuo.

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Orchestral suites (Bach)}}
*[http://allofbach.com/en/bwv/bwv-1066/ Orchestral Suite No. 1], [http://allofbach.com/en/bwv/bwv-1067/ Orchestral Suite No. 2], [http://allofbach.com/en/bwv/bwv-1068/ Orchestral Suite No. 3] and [http://allofbach.com/en/bwv/bwv-1069/ Orchestral Suite No. 4]: performances by the [[Netherlands Bach Society]] (video and background information)
* {{IMSLP|work=Orchestral Suite No.1, BWV 1066 (Bach, Johann Sebastian)|cname=Orchestral Suite No. 1
|work2=Orchestral Suite No.2, BWV 1067 (Bach, Johann Sebastian)|cname2=No. 2
|work3=Orchestral Suite No.3, BWV 1068 (Bach, Johann Sebastian)|cname3=No. 3
|work4=Orchestral Suite No.4, BWV 1069 (Bach, Johann Sebastian)|cname4=No. 4}}
* [http://icking-music-archive.org/scores/bach/bwv1066/ Orchestral Suite No. 1], [http://icking-music-archive.org/scores/bach/bwv1067/ No. 2], [http://icking-music-archive.org/scores/bach/bwv1068/ No. 3], [http://icking-music-archive.org/scores/bach/bwv1069/ No. 4] [[Werner Icking Music Archive]]

{{Bach violin concertos}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Suites by Johann Sebastian Bach]]
[[Category:Orchestral suites|Bach]]