J.S. Bach: Six Cello Suites for Flute

Description

Flute — It has been my practice to teach the solo music of JohannSebastian Bach to my flute students unrelentingly. They benefit fromthe form, implied harmonies, and the complicated yet simple natureof the music’s technical content. They learn the broad spectrumof Bach’s works and are transformed as musicians after workingwithin his repertoire. Flutists have only the Partita in A minor toproclaim as a solo work written authentically by Bach for the flute.Flute teachers often use melodies of Bach from other sources as ameans of drawing students closer to his mastery and genius. Myexperience with teaching Bach and playing his chamber music isdeeply influenced by the brilliant mind of my flute teacher SamuelBaron and his Bach Aria Group. Other influences include listeningto masters of the transverse flute, keyboard, and strings.Originally considered technical studies for cello, the SuitesBWV 1007–1012 were transcribed by Bach’s second wife AnnaMagdalena. They were written for the cello, tuned naturally forSuites I–IV, and in “scordatura” (with the A-string tuned down to C)in Suite V. Suite VI was believed to have been written for the fivestringpiccolo violoncello, 7/8 the size of a normal cello. The Suitesare performed in bass clef in G and tenor clef in C by the modernfour-string cello. We can also see that this cycle of Suites followsa structure of movements that shows symmetry in form throughoutthe entire oeuvre.Overlooked until the early 1900s, the Suites found new lifewhen cellist Pablo Casals drew attention to these important works,securing the high regard of all musicians. This edition of Bach’sCello Suites provides flutists an opportunity to view the score’sstructure and form with minimal editorial markings. Contemporaryflutists can now add the passion and drama of Bach’s solo music forcello to their repertoire and further their growth as musicians.I began learning the Cello Suites at the suggestion of Bostonflutist and cellist Tim Taranella, playing from the edition in trebleclef given to me by Professor Paul Meisen. In 2005, ProfessorMeisen and I both served on the jury of the Kobe International FluteCompetition, where he delivered a lecture in German, translatedinto Japanese, on the Bach Partita and Cello Suites. His lecturecompared the two works and offered a contrasting cello performanceof Bach’s Partita in A minor. Mesmerized by Professor Meisen’s2005 lecture, I began the journey of learning the Cello Suites. The Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello are some of the most frequently performed and recognizable solo compositions ever written. Master flutist and teacher Amy Porter has meticulously transcribed these pieces for performance on her upcoming CD. She has kept the integrity of the original Bach masterpieces while making them more idiomatic for the flute. These pieces are appropriate for teaching and performance, and are now available in this wonderful, newly edited collection, simply a must-have for any serious teacher or student. Errata from Amy Porter.