The harpsichord concertos, BWV 1052–1065, are concertos for harpsichord, strings and continuo by Johann Sebastian Bach. There are seven complete concertos for a single harpsichord (BWV 1052–1058), three concertos for two harpsichords (BWV 1060–1062), two concertos for three harpsichords (BWV 1063 and 1064), and one concerto for four harpsichords (BWV 1065). Two other concertos include solo harpsichord parts: the concerto BWV 1044, which has solo parts for harpsichord, violin and flute, and Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D major, with the same scoring. In addition there is a nine-bar concerto fragment for harpsichord (BWV 1059) which adds an oboe to the strings and continuo.

All of Bach's harpsichord concertos (with the exception of the 5th Brandenburg Concerto) are thought to be arrangements made from earlier concertos for melodic instruments probably written in Köthen. In many cases, only the harpsichord version has survived.

Compositional history

From 1729 to 1741, Bach was director of the Collegium musicum in Leipzig, a student musical society, founded by Georg Philipp Telemann in 1703 and run before Bach by Balthasar Schott. The Collegium musicum often gave performances at Zimmermann's coffee house. It was for these occasions that Bach produced his harpsichord concertos, among the first concertos for keyboard instrument ever written. It is thought that the multiple harpsichord concertos were heard earlier than those for one harpsichord, perhaps because his sons C. P. E. Bach and W. F. Bach (both excellent harpsichord players) were living at home until 1733 and 1734, respectively. It is likely that Johann Ludwig Krebs, who studied with Bach until 1735, also played harpsichord in the Collegium musicum.

The concertos for one harpsichord, BWV 1052–1059, survive in an autograph score (now in the Staatsbibliothek Berlin, Mus. ms. Bach P 234) which is not a fair copy but a draft, or working score, and has been dated to about 1738. Bach may of course have played the works much earlier, using the parts from an original melody-instrument concerto and extemporising a suitable harpsichord version while playing.

Bach's harpsichord concertos were, until recently, often underestimated by scholars, who did not have the convenience of hearing the benefits that historically informed performance has brought to works such as these. For instance Albert Schweitzer believed "the transcriptions have often been prepared with almost unbelievable cursoriness and carelessness. Either time was pressing or he was bored by the matter." Recent research has demonstrated quite the reverse to be true; he transferred solo parts to the harpsichord with typical skill and variety. Bach's interest in the harpsichord concerto form can be inferred from the fact that he arranged every suitable melody-instrument concerto as a harpsichord concerto, and while the harpsichord versions have been preserved the same is not true of the melody-instrument versions.

Concertos for single harpsichord

The works BWV 1052–1057 were intended as a set of six, shown in the manuscript in Bach's traditional manner beginning with 'J.J.' (Jesu Juva) and ending with 'Finis. S. D. Gl.' (Soli Deo Gloria). Aside from the Brandenburg concertos, it is the only such collection of concertos in Bach's oeuvre. The concerto BWV 1058 and fragment BWV 1059 are contained at the end of the score, and are an earlier attempt at a set of (headed J.J.) which was abandoned.

Concerto I in D minor, BWV 1052

1. Allegro
2. Adagio
3. Allegro

Scoring: harpsichord solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 22 minutes

This harpsichord concerto is generally believed to have been based on a lost violin concerto by Bach because "it contains many passages suggestive of string-crossing and of figuration based around open strings," writes John Butt, who also notes that "if this is indeed the case, it [was] Bach's most virtuoso violin concerto". The original is, adds Butt, "generally assumed to have been a very early concerto." In 1728, Bach had arranged all three movements of the lost concerto as organ movements for use in two of his cantatas; the first two movements for the sinfonia and first choral movement of Wir müssen durch viel Trübsal in das Reich Gottes eingehen, BWV 146 and the last movement is in Ich habe meine Zuversicht, BWV 188.

The harpsichord transcription was made by transferring the ripieno string parts without alteration and considerably augmenting the solo part for harpsichord to make it as comparatively virtuosic as the original must have been, as well as adding chords to fill in the harmony and figurative developments in the left hand. This is particularly notable in the first and third movements; in the second movement, however, the left hand almost exactly duplicates the ripieno continuo part, and the right hand plays a melody that is probably taken directly from the original violin part.

The first and third movements share a similar harmonic structure based upon which the movements can be divided into four sections. The opening section of both movements gives the theme in the tonic (D minor) followed by a statement of the theme in the relative major (F major). The second section modulates to the dominant (A minor) and then its relative major (C major). The third section modulates to the subdominant (G minor) and its relative major (B flat major). Finally, the fourth section gives a recapitulation of the theme in the tonic, with no subsequent major key statement.

This concerto has remained the most popular of the collection from the 19th century onwards; Felix Mendelssohn played it and Johannes Brahms wrote a cadenza for it; the first publication of it was in 1838 by the Kistner Publishing House. It was often played and recorded with the piano in the 20th century, though with the rise of historically informed performance from the 1960s, it is now regularly played on the harpsichord again.

There also exists a version of this harpsichord concerto transcribed by C. P. E. Bach in 1733 or 1734, listed as BWV 1052a; it is not executed particularly well but shows that the process was studied in Bach's household.

Concerto II in E major, BWV 1053

1. Allegro
2. Siciliano
3. Allegro

Scoring: harpsichord solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 19 minutes

This harpsichord concerto is thought to be based on a concerto for a wind instrument, probably oboe or oboe d'amore, and from stylistic considerations, it may have dated from Bach's time in Leipzig. It exists, like BWV 1052, in a later transcription in his cantatas Gott soll allein mein Herze haben, BWV 169 and Ich geh und suche mit Verlangen, BWV 49, from which further inferences can be made about the original concerto.

Bach changed his method of arrangement with this work, significantly altering the ripieno parts from the original concerto for the first time, limited much more to the tutti sections. The lower string parts were much reduced in scope, allowing the harpsichord bass to be more prominent, and the upper strings were likewise modified to allow the harpsichord to be at the forefront of the texture.

Concerto III in D major, BWV 1054

See also: Violin Concerto in E major (Bach)

1. Allegro
2. Adagio e piano sempre
3. Allegro

Scoring: harpsichord solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 17 minutes

The surviving violin concerto in E major, BWV 1042 was the model for this work, which was transposed down a tone to allow the top note e''' to be reached as d''', the common top limit on harpsichords of the time. The transcription process was based on the same principles as BWV 1053.

Concerto IV in A major, BWV 1055

1. Allegro
2. Larghetto
3. Allegro ma non tanto

Scoring: harpsichord solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 14 minutes

Probably based on a lost concerto for oboe d'amore, this is a mature and formally concentrated work. There exists a figured bass continuo part for this concerto, which was added later, probably for a particular occasion at which a second harpsichord, chamber organ or theorbo filled out the harmony of the continuo bass.

Concerto V in F minor, BWV 1056

1. Allegro moderato
2. Largo
3. Presto

Scoring: harpsichord solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 10 minutes

The outer movements probably come from a violin concerto which was in G minor, and the middle movement is probably from an oboe concerto in F major; this movement is also the sinfonia to the cantata Ich steh mit einem Fuß im Grabe, BWV 156.

This middle movement closely resembles the opening Andante of a Flute Concerto in G major (TWV 51:G2) by Georg Philipp Telemann; the soloists play essentially identical notes for the first two-and-a-half measures. Although the chronology cannot be known for certain, Steven Zohn has presented evidence that the Telemann concerto came first, and that Bach intended his movement as an elaboration of his friend Telemann's original.

Concerto VI in F major, BWV 1057

See also: BWV 1049

1. Allegro
2. Andante
3. Allegro assai

Scoring: harpsichord solo, flauto dolce (recorder) I/II, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 17 minutes

An arrangement of Brandenburg Concerto No. 4, BWV 1049, which has a concertino of violin and two recorders. Leaving the flute parts unchanged, Bach wrote the harpsichord part as a combination of the violin material from the original concerto and a written out continuo.

Bach probably placed this concerto as the last of the set intentionally, as the pinnacle of the series, due to the richness of instrumental color produced by the three families of instruments, and the extraordinarily varied and effective harpsichord part.

Concerto in G minor, BWV 1058

See also: Violin Concerto in A minor (Bach)

1. Allegro
2. Andante
3. Allegro assai

Scoring: harpsichord solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 14 minutes

Probably Bach's first attempt at writing out a full harpsichord concerto, this is a transcription of the violin concerto in A minor, BWV 1041. It seems Bach was dissatisfied with this work, the most likely reason being that he did not alter the ripieno parts very much, so the harpsichord was swamped by the orchestra too much to be an effective solo instrument.

Bach did not continue the intended set which he had marked with a 'J.J.' at the start of this work: he abandoned the next harpsichord concerto, the fragment BWV 1059, which was to be based on an oboe concerto, after 10 incomplete bars.

Concerto in D minor, BWV 1059

See also: Geist und Seele wird verwirret, BWV 35

1. No Tempo Indication

Scoring: harpsichord solo, oboe, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 20 seconds

Apparently Bach intended to write a harpsichord concerto but abandoned the endeavor after only 9 bars. The fragment was taken from the opening Sinfonia of the Cantata, BWV 35 “Geist und Seele wird verwirret” (1726). In the cantata, Bach uses an obbligato organ not only in the two sinfonias (which evidently form the first and last movements of this incomplete or lost instrumental concerto, possibly for oboe), but also in the aria No. 1, whose siciliano character likewise points to its original function as a concerto movement. Thus, some modern scholars have constructed a proposed harpsichord or oboe concerto from BWV 35 (sinfonia/aria/sinfonia), and the BWV 1059 fragment.

Concertos for two harpsichords

Concerto in C minor, BWV 1060

1. Allegro
2. Adagio
3. Allegro

Scoring: harpsichord I/II solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 14 minutes

While the existing score is in the form of a concerto for harpsichord and strings, Bach scholars believe it to be a transcription of a lost double concerto in D minor; a reconstructed arrangement of this concerto for two violins or violin and oboe is classified as BWV 1060R. The subtle and masterful way in which the solo instruments blend with the orchestra marks this out as one of the most mature works of Bach's years at Köthen. The middle movement is a cantabile for the solo instruments with orchestral accompaniment.

Concerto in C major, BWV 1061

1. Allegro
2. Adagio ovvero Largo
3. Fuga

Scoring: harpsichord I/II solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 19 minutes

Of all Bach's harpsichord concertos, this is probably the only one that originated as a harpsichord work, though not in an orchestral guise. The work originated as a concerto for two harpsichords unaccompanied (BWV 1061a, in the manner of the Italian Concerto, BWV 971), and the addition of the orchestral parts may not have been by Bach himself. The string orchestra does not fulfil an independent role, and only appears to augment cadences; it is silent in the middle movement. The harpsichords have much dialogue between themselves and play in an antiphonal manner throughout.

Concerto in C minor, BWV 1062

See also: Concerto for Two Violins (Bach)

1. Vivace
2. Largo ma non tanto
3. Allegro assai

Scoring: harpsichord I/II solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 15 minutes

The well-known Double Violin Concerto in D minor, BWV 1043 is the basis of this transcription. It was transposed down a tone for the same reason as BWV 1054, so that the top note would be d'''.

Concertos for three harpsichords

Concerto in D minor, BWV 1063

1. [no tempo indication]
2. Alla Siciliana
3. Allegro

Scoring: harpsichord I/II/III solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 14 minutes

Scholars have yet to settle on the probable scoring and tonality of the concerto on which this was based, though they do think it is, like the others, a transcription.

Bach's sons may have been involved in the composition of this work. They may have also been involved in the performances of this particular concerto, as Friedrich Konrad Griepenkerl wrote in the foreword to the first edition that was published in 1845 that the work owed its existence "presumably to the fact that the father wanted to give his two eldest sons, W. Friedemann and C.Ph. Emanuel Bach, an opportunity to exercise themselves in all kinds of playing." It is believed to have been composed by 1733 at the latest.

Concerto in C major, BWV 1064

1. Allegro
2. Adagio
3. Allegro assai

Scoring: harpsichord I/II/III solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 17 minutes

This concerto was probably based on an original in D major for three violins. A reconstructed arrangement of this concerto for three violins in D major is classified as BWV 1064R. In both forms this concerto shows some similarity to the concerto for two violins/harpsichords, BWV 1043/1062, in the interaction of the concertino group with the ripieno and in the cantabile slow movement.

Concerto in A minor for four harpsichords, BWV 1065

See also: L'estro Armonico

1. Allegro
2. Largo
3. Allegro

Scoring: harpsichord I/II/III/IV solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 10 minutes

Bach made a number of transcriptions from Antonio Vivaldi's concertos, especially from his op.3 set, entitled L'estro Armonico; he adapted them for solo harpsichord and solo organ, and for the concerto for 4 violins in B minor, op.3 no.10, RV 580, he decided upon the unique solution of using four harpsichords and orchestra. This is thus the only harpsichord concerto by Bach which was not an adaptation of his own material. The middle movement has the four harpsichords playing differently-articulated arpeggios in a very unusual tonal blend, while Bach provided some additional virtuosity and tension in the other movements.

Concertos for harpsichord, flute, and violin

Concerto in A minor, BWV 1044

1. Allegro
2. Adagio ma non tanto e dolce
3. Alla breve

Scoring: harpsichord solo, violin solo, flute solo, violin I/II, viola, continuo (cello, violone)

Length: c. 22 minutes

Though this is a concerto for three instruments (hence it is occasionally called Bach's triple concerto), the harpsichord has the most prominent role and greatest quantity of material; there are several cadenzas and virtuosic passages for the instrument; the scoring is identical to that of Brandenburg concerto no.5, BWV 1050, though the character is quite different. The first and third movements are adapted from the prelude and fugue in A minor for solo harpsichord, BWV 894, which have been developed with added tutti sections. The middle movement is from the trio sonata for organ in D minor, BWV 527, which has been expanded to four voices; only the solo instruments play, and the flute and violin share the melody and accompaniment, switching roles on the repeat of each half.

Concerto in D major, BWV 1050 (Brandenburg Concerto No. 5)

Further information: BWV 1050

1. Allegro
2. Affettuoso
3. Allegro

Concertino: harpsichord, violin, flute

Ripieno: violin, viola, cello, violone, (harpsichord)

The harpsichord is both a concertino and a ripieno instrument: in the concertino passages the part is obbligato; in the ripieno passages it has a figured bass part and plays continuo.

This concerto makes use of a popular chamber music ensemble of the time (flute, violin, and harpsichord), which Bach used on their own for the middle movement. It is believed that it was written in 1719, to show off a new harpsichord by Michael Mietke which Bach had brought back from Berlin for the Cöthen court. It is also thought that Bach wrote it for a competition at Dresden with the French composer and organist Louis Marchand; in the central movement, Bach uses one of Marchand's themes. Marchand fled before the competition could take place, apparently scared off in the face of Bach's great reputation for virtuosity and improvisation.

The concerto is well suited throughout to showing off the qualities of a fine harpsichord and the virtuosity of its player, but especially in the lengthy solo 'cadenza' to the first movement. It seems almost certain that Bach, considered a great organ and harpsichord virtuoso, was the harpsichord soloist at the premiere. Scholars have seen in this work the origins of the solo keyboard concerto as it is the first example of a concerto with a solo keyboard part.

An earlier version, BWV 1050a, has innumerable small differences from its later cousin, but only two main ones: there is no part for cello, and there is a shorter and less elaborate (though harmonically remarkable) harpsichord cadenza in the first movement. (The cello part in BWV 1050, when it differs from the violone part, doubles the left hand of the harpsichord.)

Notes

1. ^ John Butt, "Harpsichord Concertos," Oxford Composer Companion: J. S. Bach, ed. Malcolm Boyd and John Butt, Oxford University Press, 1999, p. 210, ISBN 978-0-19-866208-2
2. ^ Steven Zohn, Music for a Mixed Taste: Style, Genre, and Meaning in Telemann's Instrumental Works, Oxford University Press, 2008, pp. 192-94, ISBN=978-0-19-516977-5
3. ^ Uwe Kraemer. Liner notes for Bach: The Harpsichord Concertos (Igor Kipnis, The London Strings, Neville Mariner) CBS Records M2YK 45616, 1989.
4. ^ Oxford Composer Companions guide to Bach (ed. Boyd)
5. ^ Bach: The Concertos for 3 and 4 Harpsichords – Trevor Pinnock and the English Concert, from the CD booklet written by Dr. Werner Brieg, 1981, Archive Produktion (bar code 3-259140-004127)
6. ^ Steinberg, M. The Concerto: A Listener's Guide, p. 14, Oxford (1998) ISBN 0-19-513931-3
7. ^ Hutchings, A. 1997. A Companion to Mozart's Piano Concertos, p. 26, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-816708-3

References

• Werner Breig, Bach: Concertos for Harpsichord, ISMN: M-006-20451-9 (1999, Bärenreiter)
• Werner Breig, notes to recordings of the complete harpsichord concertos by Trevor Pinnock and The English Concert (1981, Archiv Produktion); lengths also taken from these recordings