College Term Paper: An Historical Background and Analysis of Sonata No. 1 in G Minor for Solo Violin by J. S. Bach
By Leonora La Due
Brandeis University(?), Spring 1992, 28 pages
Condition as shown in photos. Bound with clear plastic cover. Some shelf wear and age, including foxing on cover sheet and page edges. No markings found.
Includes:
Bach : His Life in Cöthen
Historical Precedent for Bach's Solo Violin Sonatas
The Sonata Form Tradition
Appendix : String Music Composed During Cöthen Period
Annotated Bibliography
From the LA Phil:
Wherever his fortunes took him, Bach was incredibly productive. In Anhalt-Cöthen (1717-1723) he flourished as conductor of the court orchestra and produced, among other works, orchestral pieces, concertos, and a dozen particularly amazing compositions, six for violin alone and six suites for cello alone.
The G-minor Sonata opens with an imposing Adagio whose grandeur, so miraculously set forth on the single violin, could not be enhanced if transcribed for a full symphony orchestra. The second movement fugue is one of those Bachian structures that grow to amazing proportions from an almost ridiculously brief and seemingly insignificant subject. A lovely and gentle Siciliana separates the fugue from the whirlwind that comprises the final movement — a presto, perpetual motion Baroque essay in violin virtuosity that will be as pertinent today as it was in 1720.