Bwv 1001 1006

Probably the first question that arises in relation to the new recording of the Sei Solo (BWV 1001-1006) for solo violin by Johann Sebastian Bach is that of its justification: Since there are already numerous, sometimes legendary recordings of this work, why then another one? The answer lies in the recently published book "Aus der Seele muß man spielen …" (Vienna 2020), in which the author of this preface deals with the baroque theory of affect and its effects on interpretation. The present recording by the Austrian violinist Daniel Auner is probably the first recording in which the principles of the theory of affect and musical rhetoric have been consistently implemented.

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin (BWV 1001–1006) in the small German town of Köthen. During this period, between 1717 and 1723, he served as the conductor of a royal ensemble comprising accomplished musicians employed by Prince Leopold, a ruler renowned for his passion for music. It is believed that the autographs of three sonatas (in G minor, A minor and C major) and the three partitas (in B minor, D minor and E major) were written by Bach in 1720 during his tenure in Köthen. However, it is also possible that he had composed them earlier, in Weimar, where he had been employed as a court concertmaster; a professional violinist in the royal orchestra from 1714. Bach titled the pieces Sei Solo a Violino senza Basso accompagnato, which translates as Six Solos for Violin Without Bass Accompaniment. The title serves to blur the marked generic distinction between the groups of sonatas and partitas, as well as to emphasise the role of the solo violin in the composition, making a departure from the common Baroque practice of having the basso continuo accompaniment. It is noteworthy that the title page of the manuscript bears the note "Libro primo - Volume One," which may indicate that the six Suites for solo cello were "Libro secondo - Volume Two."

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin (BWV 1001–1006) in the small German town of Köthen. During this period, between 1717 and 1723, he served as the conductor of a royal ensemble comprising accomplished musicians employed by Prince Leopold, a ruler renowned for his passion for music. It is believed that the autographs of three sonatas (in G minor, A minor and C major) and the three partitas (in B minor, D minor and E major) were written by Bach in 1720 during his tenure in Köthen. However, it is also possible that he had composed them earlier, in Weimar, where he had been employed as a court concertmaster; a professional violinist in the royal orchestra from 1714. Bach titled the pieces Sei Solo a Violino senza Basso accompagnato, which translates as Six Solos for Violin Without Bass Accompaniment. The title serves to blur the marked generic distinction between the groups of sonatas and partitas, as well as to emphasise the role of the solo violin in the composition, making a departure from the common Baroque practice of having the basso continuo accompaniment. It is noteworthy that the title page of the manuscript bears the note "Libro primo - Volume One," which may indicate that the six Suites for solo cello were "Libro secondo - Volume Two."

The Sonatas for Violin and Obbligato Harpsichord BWV 1014, 1016 and 1017 by Johann Sebastian Bach, featured in this CD, belong to a group of six, which also includes Sonatas BWV 1015, 1018 and 1019. Together with the three Sonatas and the three Partitas for unaccompanied Solo Violin BWV 1001-1006 and the Sonatas for Violin and continuo BWV 1021 and 1023 (the latter of which is included in this CD), they were all composed by J. S. Bach during the period he spent in Köthen, between 1717 and 1723, when the composer was employed at the court of Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Köthen.

“The artist's first task is to forget himself.” This statement, bold in its time, has been ascribed to Eugène Ysaÿe, referred to as the “King of the Violin”, who as a composer and performer considerably contributed to the modernisation of violin playing. In 1923, he was so deeply impressed by J. S. Bach’s Violin Sonata No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001, as performed by Joseph Szigeti, that within a few hours (!) he sketched a set of six sonatas as a counterpart to Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas, BWV 1001-1006.

Virtuoso Czech violinist Barbora Kolářová releases her debut recording of three works for solo violin, one written for her and heard in its premiere recording, and the other two significant works that are given new life and deserved attention through her vibrant renderings.

Thomas Zehetmair, one of the great violinists of our time, returns after almost four decades to the summit of the violin repertory, the solo Sonatas and Partitas (BWV 1001-1006) of Johann Sebastian Bach.