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The Sonatas and Partitas for unaccompanied violin by Johann Sebastian Bach are a staple of the literature. They are likewise notoriously difficult to play. The music is laced with double stops and chords, some of which span three and even all four strings. These chordal masterworks present an enormous challenge to the innovative violinist. However, J.S. Bach himself in all probability would not have prevised our current difficultness playing his music when he wrote it over 300 years ago. In his day, the bridge of the violin was rather flat. Thus, playing chords did not require the modern technique employed to cross multiple strings for the duration of a single chord. The innovative violin, however, has a highly sloped bridge that sets each string at a dissimilar height. Thus, chords ought to be at least partially rolled rather than merely brushed — which primarily raises the level of difficultness beyond what Bach might have anticipated in his own time. Some of his more difficult compositions, such as the fugue from Sonata No. 1 in G minor and the gorgeous but torturous (for the violinist) Chaconne in D minor, are at times written in true four-part harmony. Translation: four-note chords played one after the other, for measure upon measure, alternating up bow and down bow, oftentimes at a somewhat quick tempo. When initial beginning to study unaccompanied Bach, students often times slow down the bow and press with the hand. The resulting “crunching” sound often leads to tightness in the bow arm and hand, which causes even more crunching. Pretty soon, the left hand likewise becomes tight and the next thing to go is intonation, as the tense left hand begins to grip the neck of the violin and refuses to move with it is ordinary elasticity. No wonder so a heap of violinists refrain from performing unaccompanied Bach as much as possible! So, is it possible to play the Bach Sonatas and Partitas with outstanding tone and a comfortable sentiment of relaxation? I believe that the answer is yes, but it may require a rather dissimilar approach than the student is accustomed to using for other music. First, it is necessary to comprehend that most of the chords will need to be rolled to numerous extent. It is nearly totally unlikely to play all four (or even three) strings simultaneously and fabricate anything approaching a good sound. In addition, the bow must glide over the strings using bow speed, rather than pressure, to achieve breadth of sound. Although the dominant “American” school of violin relies partly on pressure from the arm for great tone, this just does not work as well for chordal passages in unaccompanied Bach. A little bit of extra bow speed and a lightening of pressure primarily opens the sound and allows each chord to speak without a crunch at the get started of the stroke. Using less pressure for chords is also permissible because, with more notes played at once, comes proportionately more volume (or sensed volume). It may aid likewise to pretend that the bow is playing only one note, rather than a four note chord. In sum, rolling the chords, lightening the bow pressure, increasing the bow speed, and keeping the right hand relaxed will keep the sound open, clear, and clean. Good intonation is likewise critical to acheiving a great sound on Bach Sonatas and Partitas. When played in tune, the violin rings beautifully as it picks up shadow tones from the other strings. This ringing sound also helps chords to sound cleaner and speak more clearly. Working through each chordal passage for intonation tardily and with precision is of critical importance. Some of the chords are veritably awkward, and once in a while there is no magic solution or perfective fingering. Another difficultness is the prevalence of perfective fifths that require the same finger to depress two strings at once. It may be tempting to merely roll the hand and finger under the violin to reach both notes with a flattened finger, but this approach disrupts the hand position and may add loads of tension to the left hand. Instead, it is best to find a position for the finger in amongst the two strings that catches both notes at the same time without moving the finger at all for the duration of the fifth. Every student’s hand and finger shape is different, so it is necessary to experiment to figure out the optimal placement of the finger for playing fifths in tune. In any event, it is far better to have a more or less imperfect fifth than to change the entire hand position to accommodate this interval. Unaccompanied Bach is difficult for another reason — precisely because there is no accompaniment, and thence no pianist or orchestra to help maintain a steady tempo or to provide a framework for intonation. Rather, the beat and tuning will have to come completely from within. It may be helpful to do not forget that a great deal of of the movements are in fact “dances,” and thence many times sound best when played with steadiness, grace, and a sure calm. Unaccompanied Bach, while difficult, offers a good deal of of the most rewarding music for violinists when played well. After all, this music is finish in and of itself — there are no other elements or players necessary to fill in gaps in the harmony. A good place to begin is with the primary motion of Sonata No.1 in G minor. The rhythm is tricky but the chords are spaced somewhat far detached and are connected with recitative-like lines that sound almost improvisatory. Most helpful customer reviews 55 of 62 people found the following review helpful. 88 of 108 people found the following review helpful. There is not even one bad thing that I can say about Perlman’s playing the violin sonatas therefore I will talk about the pianists part in this recording.
For starters, when I bought this CD, I have never before lisened to the Mozart Violin Sonatas successivley played at all. Though after listening to the C major sonata, (K.296), D major sonata, (K.306) and the G major sonata, (K.379), I have astonishngly found out that there is much more than just playing the sonatas right. It is actually a shere musical expressiveness which, even one who cannot distinguish between Barenboim and Perlman to some other amateur pianist and violinst will find out that indeed this recording is of great value. A fact that has brought me about to listen to this CD many times.
Barenboim has always been known to be on of the best pianists to accompany in Lieders and violin/cello sonatas. In this recording one can listen to the synergy between Perlamn and Barenboim and with great exploratory uniqueness.
Barenboim plays with exact percision with Perlman, although one should not take this to be shere technicallity but great notice to the solist. He is able to reach to the depths of the Sonata, that although might sound frivolous and simple minded at first, it successfully depicits a great picture and monumental view of the way an accomplice should listen to it.
I have listened to almost every CD of Barenboim play the piano and this is one of the best of them.
And what about Perlman? No one should be astonished, because one who has listened to a few recordings of him playing Mozart, (i.e Mozart Violin Concertos No. 3&5 with Lhevine), will agree with me that there is a perfect sound, and expressivness, which Perlman has in a profoundly perfect way.
What makes this CD even better than other perfomances of the other recordings of the violon Sonatas is that it is a DDD performance, (digitally recorded, with superior qualtiy), and a long time history and coexperience with one another, Perlman with Barenboim.
Enough said, now just listen to it. 3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Let me just say I am absolutely thrilled with this purchase. Every piece is played beautifully. I have listened to all four of the cds and Mozart’s soul is in the room with me (thanks to these two men and their musical gifts). If you want music that is played with heart and soul at a “reasonable price”, here it is…your box set has arrived. I will still listen and look for Mutter’s recordings, but I will not pay the premium prices being asked at the current time! This set was everything I could have hoped for in a set of Mozart’s violin sonatas…when I put the cd into my player…I am transported to a a place where I “feel” the music. The price for this experience was well worth it! |
Wonderful to re-listen to these works.