Orchestral Suite in G minor, BWV 1070
The Orchestral Suite in G minor, BWV 1070 is a work by an unknown composer. It is part of the Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis catalogue (BWV catalogue) of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, and sometimes called the "Orchestral Suite No. 5", but was almost certainly not composed by him. It is more likely that the composer was his son Wilhelm Friedemann Bach. It is a French suite with an overture and several dances, which has a similar structure to the 4 orchestral suites known to have been written by J. S. Bach. Evidence for its not being by the older composer includes the form of the opening movement, which differs from that used in the suites known to be by him, and the fact that the third movement is in a different key to the rest of the work, whereas J. S. Bach's suites are homotonal.
History
Modern publications of the suite derive from a collection of manuscript parts prepared by Christian Friedrich Penzel, one of J. S. Bach's last pupils, in 1753. The suite was first published by the Bach Gesellschaft in 1897, in volume 45 of their publication of J. S. Bach's complete works. In 1950, Wolfgang Schmieder assigned to the suite the number 1070 in the Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis (BWV) catalogue.[1]
Identity of the composer
Despite the inclusion of the suite in the BWV catalogue, the suite's composer is not known. The British musicologist Nicholas Kenyon writes that the suite is "certainly not by J. S. Bach", and that it is "likely to be by an unknown composer or possibly W. F. Bach".[2] The American musicologist David Schulenberg, who published a detailed study of the suite in 2010, also considers that W. F. Bach is "the most likely candidate" among the suite's possible composers, citing Wilhelm Friedemann's close relationship with Penzel, the copyist, and stylistic similarities between the suite and Wilhelm Friedemann's other compositions.[3]
Instrumentation
This suite is scored for strings and basso continuo.
Structure
This suite consists of five movements.
- Larghetto - Un poco allegro (G minor, prelude and double fugue)
- Torneo (G minor, binary form)
- Aria (Adagio) (E-flat major, binary form with possible allusions to sonata form)
- Menuetto alternativo - Trio (G minor, minuet and trio form, trio in G major)
- Capriccio (G minor, double fugue)
See also
- J. S. Bach: Orchestral Suites Nos. 1-4, BWV 1066-1069
References
- ^ Schulenberg, David (2010). "An Enigmatic Legacy: Two Instrumental Works Attributed to Wilhelm Friedemann Bach". Bach. 41 (2): 46.
- ^ The Faber Pocket Guide to Bach. Faber & Faber. 2011. p. 352. ISBN 978-0571272006.
- ^ Schulenberg, David (2010). "An Enigmatic Legacy: Two Instrumental Works Attributed to Wilhelm Friedemann Bach". Bach. 41 (2): 54.
External links
- Orchestral Suite in G minor, BWV 1070: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
- v
- t
- e
- Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin, BWV 1001–1006
- Partita No. 1
- No. 2
- No. 3
- Cello Suites, BWV 1007–1012
- Partita for Solo Flute, BWV 1013
- Six Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord, BWV 1014–1019
- Sonatas for viola da gamba and harpsichord, BWV 1027–1029
- Flute Sonatas
- in B minor, BWV 1030
- in E♭ major, BWV 1031 (doubtful)
- in A major, BWV 1032
- in C major, BWV 1033 (doubtful)
- in E minor, BWV 1034
- in E major, BWV 1035
- Trio Sonatas
- Violin Concerto in A minor, BWV 1041
- Violin Concerto in E major, BWV 1042
- Concerto for Two Violins, BWV 1043
- Triple Concerto, BWV 1044
- Sinfonia for violin and orchestra, BWV 1045
- Brandenburg Concertos, BWV 1046–1051
- Keyboard concertos, BWV 1052–1065
- Orchestral Suites, BWV 1066–1069
- Orchestral Suite in G minor, BWV 1070 (doubtful)
- The Musical Offering, BWV 1079
- The Art of Fugue, BWV 1080
- "Air on the G String"
- "Alphabet"
- "Ave Maria"
- Bach-Busoni Editions
- "Everything's Gonna Be Alright"
- "Feel My Rhythm"
- "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring"
- "Joy"
- "Lady Lynda"
- "Sheep may safely graze"
- "They"
- Trio Sonata, BWV 525a
- "A Whiter Shade of Pale"