Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach, the capital
of the duchy of Saxe-Eisenach, in present-day Germany,
on 21 March 1685 O.S. (31 March 1685 N.S.). He was the
son of Johann Ambrosius Bach, the director of the town
musicians, and Maria Elisabeth Lämmerhirt. The second
surviving son of J.S. Bach, Carl Philipp Emanuel was
the most innovative and idiosyncratic member of an
extremely talented musical family. His music, unlike
that of his father or that of the master he influenced,
Haydn, did ...(+)
Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach, the capital
of the duchy of Saxe-Eisenach, in present-day Germany,
on 21 March 1685 O.S. (31 March 1685 N.S.). He was the
son of Johann Ambrosius Bach, the director of the town
musicians, and Maria Elisabeth Lämmerhirt. The second
surviving son of J.S. Bach, Carl Philipp Emanuel was
the most innovative and idiosyncratic member of an
extremely talented musical family. His music, unlike
that of his father or that of the master he influenced,
Haydn, did not define an era so much as reveal a deeply
personal response to the musical conventions of his
time. C.P.E. Bach could play his father's technically
demanding keyboard pieces at sight by the time he was
seven. Also an exceptional student in areas other than
music, he enrolled at the University of Leipzig in 1731
to study law, then transferred to the University of
Frankfurt an der Oder. He graduated in 1734, but
remained in that backwater town giving keyboard
lessons, involving himself in public concerts, and
learning the composer's craft
The Flute Sonata in C Major (BWV 1033) has been
questioned as to it's authorship; not wether it was
composed by Bach but, which Bach? This is one of three
"Bach" flute sonatas of questionable attribution; the
earliest surviving copy was made by Bach's son Carl
Philipp Emanuel, who may simply have been serving as
his father's copyist. Particularly in the first two
movements, it doesn't seem quite as mature as Bach's
other flute sonatas, which could mean that a less
experienced composer wrote the music, or simply that
Bach was finding his way in a genre that was new to
him. Indeed, it may have been written as early as 1718,
with Bach delivering the solo flute part to one of his
sons or another student, who was asked to provide a
continuo part as a compositional exercise.
The work falls into four movements, in something of the
chamber sonata style but without explicitly naming any
dance patterns until the end. The brief first movement
is officially a Presto, although it begins with a more
measured introduction. The flute plays nonstop
throughout, and when it launches into the cadenza-like
Presto proper, the continuo players may reduce their
part to a single, suspenseful, long-held chord. It's
immediately clear that the flute part of this sonata
could easily stand alone. Next comes an Allegro, a
bright little perpetual-motion piece with a chugging
accompaniment. The first theme, played twice, is
answered by a related tune, also repeated. The serene
and delicate Adagio often sends the flute into the
upper reaches of its range, though without exceeding
the Baroque flute's natural compass, as Bach requires
in his E minor and B minor sonatas. Finally, a pair of
graceful minuets show up; typically for this format,
the second is capped by a terse repeat of the
first.
Source:
Allmusic(http://www.allmusic.com/composition/sonata-for
-flute-keyboard-in-c-major-bwv-1033-mc0002364882).
Although originally written for Flute & continuo, I
created this Arrangement of the Sonata in C Major (BWV
1033) for Solo Pipe Organ (2 Manuals w/o Pedals).