ExclusiveBach: Flute Sonata in Em BWV 1034

【Classical music and nature 古典音樂小站】Johann Sebastian Bach: Flute Sonata in Em, BWV 1034. This beautiful piece was played by Alexander Murray. It has common licence (CC BY-SA 3.0 Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported), and is provided through musopen.org.

The transverse flute, or traverso, was a relatively new instrument to Bach. In his younger years, the recorder was still more popular. It was only when Bach left for Leipzig in his mid-thirties that the recorder had been replaced almost completely by the transverse flute. From then on, the recorder only appears to provide a special effect.

All that remains of this sonata in E minor, unfortunately, is a copy, made by Bach’s colleague Johann Kellner. In it, Bach makes the most of the delicate, soft timbre of the traverso, while also paying special attention to the bass or continuo part. The conversation partners are equally interesting on many points. So instead of a flute sonata, the piece might be better regarded as a duet for traverso and basso continuo (accompanying bass part with chords, ed.).

As in many sonatas from Bach’s day, here Bach follows the slow-quick-slow-quick structure. The slow movements both express a lyrical and melancholy mood. The opening Adagio ma non tanto is full of sighing motifs, where the flute remains for a moment on a dissonant. The quick movements, on the other hand, are cheerful, albeit with a rather restless energy. In the second movement, a cheery fugue for two parts, the continuo part comes to the forefront and it is the flute that often plays an accompanying part while the continuo plays ‘solo’. In the Andante, the continuo then gives free rein to the flute again, which spins out unrestrained, almost improvised long lines. The closing Allegro resumes the energy of the second movement, now taking a passionate approach. There is an exchange of short rhythmic motifs, with the flute and bass taking turns. At times, it almost seems like a tango – the flute and bass are dance partners who alternately attract and repel one another, feeling mutual love while being out for each other’s blood.
Source: www.bachvereniging.nl

The video was cpatured by Christian Schlegel in Ueschinental, Switzerland and edited by Wenjing Ma.




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