© Zani-Casadio
Leonidas Kavakos
Sei Solo (second part)
Johann Sebastian Bach
Sonatas and partitas for solo violin
Sonata No. 1 in G minor BWV 1001
Partita No. 1 in B minor BWV 1002
Partita No. 2 in D minor BWV 1004
The 1720 manuscript of the Six Sonatas and Partitas bears a title in Bach’s own hand: Six Solos for Violin without Bass Accompaniment. At the time, Bach was Kapellmeister at the court of Köthen, where he wrote the bulk of his instrumental output. It was an anomalous collection for the period, written around the same time that the composer was acknowledging the ‘cantabile’ nature of the cello in the Six Cello Suites: at the same time, he demonstrated here that the ‘vocal’ ductility of the violin can rest on a powerful harmonic and contrapuntal texture even without a harpsichord, since, if the audacity of the composer and the art of the performer so desire, an eloquent use of the bow can compensate for the lack of harmonic support from the bass. A responsibility that Leonidas Kavakos gladly assumes in his relentless quest for perfection.
