The Bach-Gesellschaft edition, the original complete
collection of Bach's works, was in 46 volumes published
in Leipzig between 1851 and 1899. It included 3 Sonatas
for Flute and Keyboard (i.e., an actual keyboard part -
BWV 1030 in B Minor, BWV 1031 in A Major and BWV 1032
in Eb Major) and a Sonata for Violin and Keyboard (BWV
1020 in G Minor) as well as 3 Sonatas for Flute and
Continuo (i.e., a figured bass part - BWV 1033 in C
Major, BWV 1034 in E Minor and BWV 1035 in E Major).
The Sonata in...(+)
The Bach-Gesellschaft edition, the original complete
collection of Bach's works, was in 46 volumes published
in Leipzig between 1851 and 1899. It included 3 Sonatas
for Flute and Keyboard (i.e., an actual keyboard part -
BWV 1030 in B Minor, BWV 1031 in A Major and BWV 1032
in Eb Major) and a Sonata for Violin and Keyboard (BWV
1020 in G Minor) as well as 3 Sonatas for Flute and
Continuo (i.e., a figured bass part - BWV 1033 in C
Major, BWV 1034 in E Minor and BWV 1035 in E Major).
The Sonata in A Minor BWV 1013 (for unaccompanied
Flute) was discovered in 1917 by Karl Straub.
In this sonata # 3, the keyboard is no mere continuo
instrument filling chords in a purely accompanimental
role; it's a full partner, with the right and left
hands providing melodic lines of their own. This is the
only Bach flute sonata to survive into the twentieth
century in a manuscript by Bach himself (the
autographed score, however, was destroyed during World
War II). Unfortunately, 46 bars of the first movement
were at some point scissored out, and modern editions
fill this gap with new material derived from the
movement's first half. The work falls into three
movements, like a Vivaldi concerto, rather than the
four-movement church sonata structure Bach employed in
several other flute sonatas. The first movement,
Vivace, begins with a full harpsichord introduction,
music that will return through the movement, sometimes
abbreviated, in ritornello fashion. The flute arrives
with its own take on this material, and the flute and
harpsichord proceed to work through this and related,
bouncy music in full three-voice writing (although the
left-hand harpsichord part is comparatively
rudimentary). The slow movement, Largo e dolce, is a
poignant flute aria with the harpsichord sometimes
providing restless counter material, sometimes echoing
the flute melody and at one point reducing its role to
a long trill. The concluding Allegro proceeds along
lines similar to the first movement, but with a steady
forward melodic drive replacing the earlier movement's
more rhythmic propulsion.
The score for Sonata No. 3 in A Major (BWV 1032) was on
the same manuscript as Concerto for Two Harpsichords in
C Minor (BWV 1062), using the blank lines at the bottom
of that score. As (Unfortunately) 45 measures were cut
(and lost) from the 1st Movement Vivace - only the
first 62 and last 2 measures survived! There are
several modern "reconstructions" available however,
this transcription uses the Ubaldo Di Gregprio
reconstruction and is noted in red.
Although originally written for Soprano Recorder
(Flute) and Harpsichord, I created this arrangement for
Viola & Acoustic Piano.