Bach Brandenburg Concertos

The following excerpt is from npr ONLINE's article Johann Sebastian Bach's "Brandenburg" Concertos.

"Few musical works are as loved--and as often performed--as the six "Brandenburg" Concertos [BWV 1046–1051] by Johann Sebastian Bach. These six works display a lighter side of Bach's imperishable genius. Yet they came into being as an unexpected gift. That's what happened in 1721 when Bach presented the Margrave of Brandenburg with a bound manuscript containing six lively concertos for chamber orchestra, works based on an Italian Concerto Grosso style. The Margrave never thanked Bach for his work--or paid him. There's no way he could have known that this gift--later named the Brandenburg Concertos--would become a benchmark of Baroque music and still have the power to move people almost three centuries later."

Brandenburg Concerto Number 5, in D major, BWV 1050, is well-suited for showing off the qualities of a fine harpsichord and the virtuosity of its player, but especially in the lengthy solo cadenza in the first movement. The first example of a concerto with a solo keyboard part, this work may well have been the trigger for the idea of the solo keyboard concerto.

The music of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750) is one of humanity's greatest treasures. It is unsurpassed in its expression of profound reverence for life, and in its depth and diversity of ideas and feelings. It provides boundless joy to listeners and performers.

Tutorial

Sheetmusic imslp (arr. August Stradal)

Sheetmusic imslp (arr. Isida Kazue Rockzaemon)