It is uncertain when Johann Sebastian Bach wrote Suite
for Orchestra No. 1 in C major, BWV 1066, the first of
his four orchestral suites. The autograph score for the
first suite has never been found. Music scholars
uncovered a set of score parts that were written
presumably for performance. It has also been determined
that the parts were copied around 1724 and that one of
the principal copyists was a scholar from Leipzig named
Meissner. This is the first known example of secular
orchestral music...(+)
It is uncertain when Johann Sebastian Bach wrote Suite
for Orchestra No. 1 in C major, BWV 1066, the first of
his four orchestral suites. The autograph score for the
first suite has never been found. Music scholars
uncovered a set of score parts that were written
presumably for performance. It has also been determined
that the parts were copied around 1724 and that one of
the principal copyists was a scholar from Leipzig named
Meissner. This is the first known example of secular
orchestral music that Bach generated in Leipzig. His
principal position as cantor of St. Thomas did not pay
for secular music. As well, certain stylistic
embellishments suggest pre-Leipzig composition. It is
generally acknowledged that he probably wrote the music
at his previous position at Cöthen and had the parts
copied in Leipzig for some event that has yet to be
uncovered.
The orchestral suite was among the nebulous musical
forms that hovered between the world of art and the
world of entertainment in the eighteenth century. This
genre is also called ouverture, which is generally
thought to be derived from excerpts from French operas
and ballets. Such works were the rage of German courts
of the eighteenth century, which was enamored with the
French styles at the time. The opening of this first
orchestral suite is unmistakably French; the telltale
slower, grand opening with its dotted rhythms give way
to very fast solo writing in the middle section which
also features counterpoint and some concerto qualities
such as a distinctive ritornello. These concerto
qualities is where Bach begins to diverge from the
strict tastes of the patrons and the work of his
contemporaries, insofar as he enjoyed blending the
French ouverture style with Italian concerto flavors.
Many Bach scholars would agree that he seemed more
partial to the brilliant Italian styles of Vivaldi and
the Scarlattis.
Among the four orchestral suites, the first, in C
major, is the most old-fashioned. Its scoring of two
oboes, bassoon, continuo, and strings is as orthodox as
its harmonies and dance movements that attach two
different dances of the same style to the same
movement. For example, the third movement is two
different gavottes. Bach has some interesting tricks
that give this opening suite some jump, such as
changing the instrumentation of the menuets so that the
first one is with full ensemble while the second is
with reduced orchestral forces. Close attention to this
music reveals a lighter approach than he had for, say,
his Brandenburg Concertos, but it is still a lovely
work. Bach's Orchestral Suites are summery, not too
demanding, though the musicians themselves are obliged
to play some very difficult figures and make them sound
easy. This is not the composer's most challenging
music, but it is unassailably fun and even
thrilling.
Although originally written for Orchestra: 2 Oboes,
Bassoon, Strings & Continuo, I created this
Transcription of the Orchestral Suite No. 1 in C Major
(BWV 1066) for Winds (Flute, Oboe & Bassoon) & Strings
(2 Violins, Viola & Cello).
PARTITION