An evening with Bach A musical visit to Bach's home Saturday, November 13, 2010

Overview	Unlike his great contemporary Handel, who remained single, Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) was a man who took on heavy family responsibilities. His first marriage was to his second cousin Maria Barbara (1684-1720), with whom he had seven children. After Maria’s sudden death in 1720, Bach married for the second time to Anna Magdalena, and they had a further thirteen children. With ten children surviving to adulthood, and the largest family of any of the great composers, Bach’s household was most likely very crowded and active. Being a father of twenty and raising ten, in addition to upholding his duties as an organist, choirmaster and court musician, it is a wonder that Bach found time to compose music at all! Yet, he managed this and more. For Bach was also a methodical and patient music teacher to his wife and all his children, four of whom - - Carl Philipp Emanuel, Wilhelm Friedemann, Johann Christoph Friedrich, Johann Christian - - went on to achieve distinguished musical careers. With so many musicians at hand, playing instruments and singing was an essential, focused part of the home environment. Our programme is a virtual visit to Bach’s home, where the great composer would play his compositions for the first time, or would listen to his children perform his works and, afterward, would give his usual encouragement: "Just practice diligently and you will do very well. You have five fingers on each hand just as healthy as mine."
Performers	Agnes Zsigovics (soprano); Rona Goldensher (baroque violin); Paul Jenkins (harpsichord); Nicolai Tarasov (baroque oboe and recorder); Kate Haynes (baroque cello).
Programme	Trio BWV 1040; Aria from Cantata BWV 147 "Bereite dir, Jesu, noch itzo die Bahn"; Trio-Sonatas BWV 1037 and BWV 1038; Aria from Cantata BWV 80 "Komm in mein Herzens Haus"; Suite BWV 997; Aria from Cantata BWV 51 "Höchster, mache deine Güte ferner alle Morgen neu"; Violin Sonata BWV 1014; Aria from Cantata BWV 61 "Öffne dich, mein ganzes Herze". This programme is a fine display of Bach’s chamber music gems.
Programme Notes	"I had not realized that all modern music owes everything to Bach" -- Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov "Bach is the beginning and end of all music" -- Max Reger "Not Brook, but Ocean should be his name" ("Bach" is the German word for "brook") -- Ludwig van Beethoven Today, Johann Sebastian Bach's name is universally recognized as a giant even among the great composers and is conceivably, to quote Richard Wagner, "the most stupendous miracle in all music." Surprisingly, however, during his lifetime Bach did not travel more than about 200 miles from the town of Eisenstadt where he was born. He remained a composer who never "made it" beyond the confines of regional German culture, experiencing intermittent poverty and unhappiness amid its bounded culture of courts, churches, princes and prelates. In fact, Bach in his own era was simply a local court and church musician who, although gaining respect from other musicians and composers, actually did not enjoy a spectacular career, instead having to struggle constantly with his living conditions, his employers and his contracts in efforts to support his large family. All the while, of course, composing brilliant musical masterpieces. After Bach’s death in 1750, knowledge of his great music continued among professional musicians and scholars; however, the general public, even at the local level, regrettably had completely forgotten his name. It was only in March 1829, when Bach’s St. Matthew Passion was revived in a Berlin performance under the direction of another German composer, Felix Mendelssohn, that Bach’s genius works began their triumphant return to the music scene. Since then, Bach’s compositions have been performed virtually everywhere around the world, establishing him as one of the most beloved and venerated composers of all times. His musical legacy has created an enormous impact on generations of composers, performers, professional and non-professional musicians, as well as music lovers of all kind for whom he has become a culminating figure of Baroque music and one of the titans in the history of art. Tonight’s programme is yet another wonderful display of Bach’s sheer mastery of compositional technique and the incomparable profundity of his musical thoughts and expression. Trio for Oboe, Violin and Basso Continuo in F major BWV 1040 Trio BWV 1040 was for a long time practically unknown to the general public. It was rediscovered in the Music Department of the Prussian State Library in Berlin, on the last page of Bach’s autograph of the Cantata entitled "Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd" BWV 208. This Cantata, known as Hunting Cantata, was composed in 1713 for the birthday of Duke Christian of Saxe-Weissenfels, and the Trio was most likely created at the same time. This charming little work is written in canonical form and it is based on the basso continuo melodic line from one of the cantata’s arias. Aria BWV 61 "Öffne dich, mein ganzes Herze" Cantata BWV 61, entitled "Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland", is the earliest of Bach’s cantatas on this programme. It was performed on the First Sunday in Advent on December 2nd, 1714 in Weimar. This is the fifth aria from the Cantata. Suite or Partita for Recorder and Harpsichord in d minor BWV 997 The Suite or Partita BWV 997 is indisputably a work composed by J.S. Bach, the authorship of which was confirmed by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. It dates back to approximately 1730. However, no manuscript written in Bach’s own hand has survived and, thus, as is often the case in his works, the original instrumentation is not altogether clear. It appears to be intended for lute (almost twenty contemporary versions for lute are in existence) or harpsichord (about five versions in existence). On the other hand, the use of the French violin clef (Treble clef placed on the first line instead of the second) on the upper staff in several harpsichord versions would confirm the assumption that the work was in fact written for a melodic instrument accompanied by Basso Continuo. For tonight’s performance, we have chosen the version for recorder and harpsichord. Aria BWV 51 "Höchster, mache deine Güte" Cantata BWV 51, entitled "Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen!" for the occasion of the Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity was first perfumed on Sunday, September 17th 1730 in Leipzig. "Höchster, mache deine Güte" is the third Aria from this Cantata. Two Trio Sonatas for Oboe, Violin and Basso Continuo Trio Sonata in C Major, BWV 1037 and Trio Sonata in G Major, BWV 1038 were composed during the period when Bach was the Kapellmeister in Cöthen (1717-1723) and they were first published in1860. Scored for two melodic instruments and basso continuo, these Sonatas are written in standard Sonata da chiesa (Italian for "Church sonata") form established by Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713) in the late 1600’s. Created in four alternating movements (slow-fast-slow-fast, in which the second is usually a fugal Allegro and fourth is a Giga) and often mistakenly associated exclusively with church ceremonies, this type of Sonata was very popular in the Baroque era due to the flexibility of this musical form to support and contain a wide range of musical ideas. The Alla breve from the Sonata BWV 1037 is a particularly interesting movement, since its main theme consists of four chromatically descending notes (C, H, B, A) which, although not in this direct order, form the spelling of Bach’s name (in German notation B is B flat and H is B natural). Aria BWV 80 "Komm in mein Herzenshaus" Aria "Komm in mein Herzenshaus" is from Cantata BWV 80 "Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott" composed for the Reformation Sunday in 1727. Sonata for Violin and Harpsichord in E major BWV 1016 The Six Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord - composed by Bach sometime during his years as Kapellmeister at the court of Cöthen - are among the finest treasures of Baroque chamber music. The third from this set, the Sonata in E major BWV 1016 performed tonight, follows the typical Sonata da chiesa structure with its traditional four slow-fast-slow-fast movements. Contrary to the Italian prototype, instead of the basic function of continuo accompaniment, Bach composed the harpsichord part to create a true partnership with the very ornamental melodic writing for the solo violin, demonstrating how perfectly well he could adopt this traditional Italian musical form to his own unique polyphonic style. Trio for Recorder, Violin and Basso Continuo in B flat major BWV 525 The source of the Trio Sonata for Recorder, Violin and Basso Continuo in B flat major BWV 525 is the first of the six Trio Sonatas known as "Organ Trio Sonatas" (BWV 525 to 530) created by Bach sometime between 1727 and 1732 in Leipzig, while he was holding the prestigious position of Cantor at Thomaskirche. Although the only surviving autograph of this music is the organ version, it is not exactly clear whether this version for organ is Bach’s original instrumentation, since several movements from the Organ Trio Sonatas also exist as Trios for various other instruments. For example, the music of the first movement of the 4th Sonata is the same as the Sinfonia in Cantata BWV 76 scored for oboe d’amore, viola da gamba and basso continuo (1723). As well, the Adagio of the 3rd Sonata is the same as a middle movement of the Triple Concerto in a minor for Fauto traverso, Violino Concertato, Cembalo and Orchestra (1730). This wonderful Trio, apparently inspired by the very idea of the instrumental trio, is a most welcome addition to the chamber music repertoire. Aria BWV 147 "Bereite dir, Jesu, noch itzo die Bahn" Aria "Bereite dir, Jesu, noch itzo die Bahn" for soprano, obligato violin and basso continuo is from the Bach’s Cantata BWV 147 "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben" written in 1723 for the occasion of the Feast of Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Reviews	Dear Nicolai, Congratulations on the 20th anniversary of the Academy Concert Series and, specifically, on the brilliant performance last night of the first concert of this season! My wife and I enjoyed it tremendously, and I want to thank you for the extra ticket you sent with my subscription, and for the advance e-mail of the program notes. This is an excellent idea and allows for diligent preparation for the concerts. I have a few comments: This was indeed a wonderful "Evening with Bach" -- my emotion was that of witnessing the beginning of it all. The entire world of classical music would be different -- or may not even exist – if it weren't for the genius of Johann Sebastian. Perhaps the quotes from Rimsky-Korsakov and Reger on the top of your program notes say it best. Bach is indeed the beginning and end of all music! The pieces selected for this all-Bach program, and as it was, for the 20th anniversary of the Academy Concert Series, were excellent and the performance exhilarating. The chromatic fugue-style suite for recorder and harpsichord reminded me of my studies at the Mozarteum in Salzburg as a teenager who rebelled against the seemingly endless repetition of these scales of all of the 12 pitches and 12 semitones in an octave, that we had to endure by listening to Bach's Chromatic Fugue of 1720. It was boring and tedious, but evidently necessary. Fugues are are to music what grammar is to language ... Kate (Haynes), who I haven't heard /seen before, performed flawlessly. Some of the cello parts were really demanding and she mastered them beautifully. You (Nicolai Tarasov, Rona (Goldensher) and Paul (Jenkins) performed superbly, as always. Overall, this performance was a pearl of an event. Thank you all for your wonderful work and dedication. Now I am looking forward to the Beethoven concert in February. Steve Gahbauer, subscriber.
Blog	November 22, 2010: What a great opening for our 20th Anniversary season! Everybody were so inspired and performed so beautifully. We had a full house and after the concert I heard so many compliments about the performance. Now people are really looking forward to our next one. Many thanks to all performers for the great job! November 12, 2010: Our Bach's concert is just around the corner. Here is the picture of Kate, Paul and Agnes working on the aria BWV 61 "Öffne dich, mein ganzes Herze" at Paul's new place - it sounds wonderful! October 27, 2010: After several month of preparations, we are ready to start our 20th Anniversary season! The first concert is coming very soon and many people already purchased season subscriptions and tickets to the Bach's concert. It will be an exciting programme so hope that many people will be able to come and enjoy great music.