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Bach Cello Suites
A note sharing how happy I have been to open the violin transcriptions of the Bach Cello Suites. To begin with, they are much easier than the Violin S&P. Harmony does get a bit more twisted as you go further back. But there is a lot of material that can be sight-read. And the music is all pretty great.One thing I'd never really bothered to come to grips with is the tuning. I knew about the 6th being written for a 5-string cello. But the 5th suite is also written in scordatura with the E string tuned down to the D. I think there are different cello editions that offer choices between transcriptions for normal tuning and a purer urtext. But viola and violin transcriptions usually can't be bothered, from what I have seen. So I've got my white-out, highlighter, and fine black nibs out to tweak the [excellent] Icking edition in ForScore.
It is a weird experience to play the wrong pitch on the E string for harmonies that require playing a sharp to get a natural, but good exercise for the brain.
If anyone knows a better edition, I'd be happy to hear about it. Otherwise, a blanket recommendation to anyone who wants to know more about Bach, or is not yet advanced enough to enjoy working on the violin set.
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https://ks15.imslp.org/files/imglnks/usimg/d/d7/IMSLP121690-WIMA.e315-vl100712.pdf
One problem with the suites, as opposed to the violin set, is that we have no autograph. Anna Magadalena probably made a fair copy, and there are a few other old ones kicking about. But we don’t know what decisions or mistakes they contain that were not in the JS Bach MS.
- Anna tried to copy Bach’s autograph as faithfully as possible.
- In Anna’s copies, the slurs tend to be short.
- After Anna finished, Bach checked the work and marked errors with dots.
- These suites may assume an underhand grip (like a double bass), meaning strong beats could be played with either an up-bow or a down-bow.
- In the BWV 1009 Prelude, thumb position is commonly used today, but it’s not actually necessary; adjacent notes can be played on the same string.
- In BWV 1011, the fifth line indicates the use of open strings.
In any case, whether playing these suites on the cello with an overhand grip or on the violin, I think it is fine to adjust things as appropriate.
Both missing slurs and incorrect slur extents are marked with dots. However, even if a slur is short, it seems it wasn't checked as long as the intended grouping wasn't misunderstood.
Anna M.'s copy of the Cello Suites probably exacerbates those problems. In addition, of the various copies that have been used to generate the urtext, I have read that while they all agree on the notes, that's about it. We can only guess at what Bach originally wrote. Good luck!
- There are instances that appear to be simple omissions.
- Given the above, some clearly marked accidentals are occasionally ignored based on the judgment of editors or performers.
- Notes where an accidental should logically remain valid across a bar line are occasionally reinterpreted as different pitches.
In any case, searching for the hidden beauty within these details is a great joy for me.
You raise a very interesting topic. In Szigeti’s writings on the development of violinists he has some very interesting suggestions that are rarely even considered today because pedagogy has advanced (?) at least in the technical sense to such an astounding degree. Among these are studying the Barucaba Variations before the caprices, extensive use of the Bartok Duos, using the Beethoven quartets as study material and learning the cello suites before considering the solo sonatas. I wonder if anyone has a done this last recently?
Cheers,
Buri
Anna M's slurs are ususally too far to the right. I must check Bach's other facsimiles to see if it's his own fault..
I learned from Watson Forbes's Chester edition. He makes personal, but convincing, choices in interpretation. Suite no.5 is for standard tuning, and suite no.6 is in G major to avoid the stratosphere.
For those interested in my edition, please refer to the GitHub repository listed in my profile. I have also uploaded files to IMSLP, but please be aware they are not the latest version.
Yes, I first read about the idea in Szigeti's book. I think for anyone not sure if they should tackle solo Bach on violin, the cello suites are a great entry point.
I've just had a quick look at the Bärenreiter, which I've had for a while as a companion to the violin s&p.
It had never occurred to me how the fingering might differ. Fingering a major 3rd 1-3 seems natural to us, but cellists seem to play 1-4, in the lower positions at least. That might do my nut in.
When BWV 1012 is performed on a four-string cello, the passages in the very high positions can feel a bit 'choked.' I much prefer performances on a five-string cello, as specified in the manuscript.
As for BWV 1011, perhaps he had other reasons for not covering it that he simply didn't want to put into writing.
And fingerings? I often borrow 'cello fingerings for my ageing hands on the viola!
