Bach: Sonatas & Partitas Jaakko Kuusisto

• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750): Violin Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001:
• 1Violin Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001: I. Adagio04:00
• 2Violin Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001: II. Fuga. Allegro05:03
• 3Violin Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001: III. Siciliana02:50
• 4Violin Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001: IV. Presto03:26
• Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002:
• 5Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: I. Allemanda05:00
• 6Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: II. Double04:00
• 7Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: III. Courante03:18
• 8Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: IV. Double. Presto03:38
• 9Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: V. Sarabanda04:16
• 10Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: VI. Double03:26
• 11Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: VII. Tempo di bourrée03:29
• 12Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: VIII. Double03:00
• Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Minor, BWV 1003:
• 13Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Minor, BWV 1003: I. Grave04:37
• 14Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Minor, BWV 1003: II. Fuga07:19
• 15Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Minor, BWV 1003: III. Andante04:56
• 16Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Minor, BWV 1003: IV. Allegro06:02
• Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004:
• 17Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: I. Allemande04:56
• 18Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: II. Courante02:41
• 19Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: III. Sarabande04:43
• 20Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: IV. Gigue03:50
• 21Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: V. Ciaccona13:22
• Violin Sonata No. 3 in C Major, BWV 1005:
• 22Violin Sonata No. 3 in C Major, BWV 1005: I. Adagio04:33
• 23Violin Sonata No. 3 in C Major, BWV 1005: II. Fuga09:38
• 24Violin Sonata No. 3 in C Major, BWV 1005: III. Largo03:33
• 25Violin Sonata No. 3 in C Major, BWV 1005: IV. Allegro assai04:47
• Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006:
• 26Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: I. Preludio03:50
• 27Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: II. Loure03:56
• 28Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: III. Gavotte en rondeau02:55
• 29Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: IV. Menuets I & II04:17
• 30Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: VI. Bourrée01:31
• 31Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: VII. Gigue01:48
• Total Runtime02:18:40

Info zu Bach: Sonatas & Partitas

There are many questions surrounding Johann Sebastian Bach’s ‘Six Solos for violin’, or the Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin, as they are usually called today. When did he compose them, and why, and for whom? In what circumstances were they performed? And why would a master of polyphony choose to write for a melody instrument with limited scope for polyphony or chords? We can only guess at the answers – which makes the works all the more fascinating. The legendary violinist George Enescu famously described the set as ‘the Himalayas of violinists’, but for more than 200 years they were primarily regarded as pedagogical exercises rather than compositions worthy of the concert hall. Felix Mendelssohn and Robert Schumann tried to popularize them by making versions with piano accompaniment, while Busoni did away with the violin altogether in his transcription of the famous Chaconne from Partita No. 2. But since Yehudi Menuhin made the first complete recording of the Sonatas and Partitas, between 1929 and 1936, they have become a staple during violin recitals, on disc and in concert. Fascinating performers and audiences alike with their architectural perfection as well as their emotional range, these are works that lend themselves to very different interpretations, and on this recording it is the Bach of Finnish violinist Jaakko Kuusisto we hear. Himself a composer – as well as violinist and conductor – Kuusisto remembers beginning to study individual movements from the set at the age of ten. The music has been with him ever since, and to him ‘no other works for the violin provide a higher challenge or greater beauty’.

Jaakko Kuusisto, violin

Jaakko Kuusisto
The violinist, conductor and composer Jaakko Kuusisto enjoys an extensive and multi-faceted career that was launched by a series of successes in international violin competitions. He is among the most frequently recorded of Finnish instrumentalists and has recorded concertos by some of the most prominent Finnish contemporary composers. He studied the violin with Géza Szilvay, Tuomas Haapanen, Miriam Fried and Paul Biss.

Kuusisto took up the post of chief conductor of the Kuopio Symphony Orchestra in 2018, and returned to the Finnish National Opera in 2019 to conduct the world première of

his new opera Jää (Ice). He is a regular guest conductor with orchestras such as the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra and Lahti Symphony Orchestra, and has previously served as principal guest conductor of the Oulu Symphony Orchestra. Currently he is artistic director of the Oulu Music Festival.

Kuusisto’s Violin Concerto, premièred by Elina Vähälä, has been successful both on record (BIS) and in concerts in Europe, the USA and Asia. He has also written concertos for piano, bassoon, trumpet and, most recently, a cello concerto for Arto Noras. Kuusisto’s other works include chamber and vocal music, several operas, and music for film.

Booklet für Bach: Sonatas & Partitas