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While
it is known that Bach habitually prepared new concerto music by
rearranging his own works on one instrument for another, most people
may not realize just how widespread this practice was. Apart from
the concertos, for example, many of Bach's cantatas have been discovered
to contain adaptations and rewordings of music and text from earlier
works: a considerable portion of the Mass in B minor and
the Christmas Oratorio were not written a priori from
scratch for these works - which, admittedly, takes a bit of the
sheen away from the unctuous regard which modern audiences have
for them.
In
view of this, it therefore doesn't come amiss that in the contemporary
compilation of the Neuen Bach-Ausgabe ('New Bach Edition')
there can be found a supplementary Verschollene Solokonzerte
in Rekonstruktionen ('Reconstructions of Lost Solo Concertos')
by musicologist Wilfried Fischer, of which three restored concertos
are recorded on this issue, in addition to a fragmentary Sinfonia
movement to an unknown cantata.
As
Fischer himself concedes the constraints and inequities of his effort:
"...it
is not even possible to achieve a reconstruction which follows a
fundamentally legitimate process which will restore the original
version note for note. The natural limits of this procedure lie
in the possibility, which should always be kept in view, that Bach
might have spontaneously deviated from the original in his arrangements
without leaving evidence of this modification.
Fischer
has "reverse-engineered" these reconstructions from extant second-generation
harpsichord arrangements, given that the original violin concertos
have disappeared. Not surprisingly, some of the material in these
works have also been found in the cantatas. In addition to their
interest as performance items, these discoveries also lend some
insight into the compositional methods of the Kapellmeister
of Cöthen.
 The
musicians on this album, as the Spoliansky song goes, are the smart-set:
Isabelle Faust (right) continues the Hänssler excursus of the
instrumental concertos as the lead soloist in all the items, joined
by Muriel Cantoreggi and Christoph Poppen in the triple violin (neé
harpsichord) concerto. Given the speculative nature of this reconstructed
music, the musicians provided their own interpretations and solutions
to the "grey areas" in the acutal performance.
The
first item - more of a filler, really - is the Sinfonia in D
BWV 1045 (as introductory movements were called) to an unknown cantata;
all that can be surmised from the rich instrumentation is that it
was probably for a festive occasion. Apart from that, the music
itself has been lost; there is not even certainty that Bach completed
the work.
In
Rilling's inimitable style, he takes the music at a swift tempo
that propels the music along: some may find it rather tempestuous,
although there is no denying the panache of the playing. Isabelle
Faust is more than capable of holding her own in this hermeneutical
discourse, engaging the Stuttgart macht-wagen with machine-gun-like
bariolage and impeccable phrasing. The crisp quality of the
recording is also immediately striking, although the solo violin
is set considerably back amidst the ensemble.
Rilling
and Faust continue their parley in the Concerto in D minor
BWV 1052R, with both parties keenly aware of each other's lebensraum:
the chamber orchestra is more than happy to provide able support
for Faust's star turn here. The slow movement, marked Adagio,
has more of an Andante flow to it - festina lente
('Make haste, slowly'), to borrow from Caesar Augustus, is the phrase
which comes to mind.
Appropriately,
there are not a few heart-on-sleeve moments which are tellingly
delineated by the players; more of the same can also be found in
the slow movement of the triple violin concerto. By contrast, the
last movement of BWV 1052R is a sparkling fireworks display of virtuosity
from start to end. Faust is technically formidable and doesn't hesitate
to show it. Hectic as the pace may be, almost witless in some places,
even - but then that's what roller-coaster rides are.
The
Concerto in G minor BWV1056R - there is an error in the detailed
track listing on page 4 of the liner notes that describes this as
the triple concerto, and vice versa for BWV 1064R as the
solo violin concerto - is taken with a rather more dance-like idiom.
Rendered with a sportive tempo and temperment, this allows the golden
timbre of Ms Faust's Sleeping Beauty Stradivarius to shine.
In the famous slow movement, she is rapt and thoughtful, albeit
the thunder is partially stolen by the harpsichordist - who is uncredited
here - with the lute stop engaged to lend a charming, folk-like
twang to the music-making: simply rapturous.
 The
Triple Concerto in D BWV1064R, compared to the previous pieces,
is taken with a more stately beat, although no less electric for
it. The trio of solo violinists sound like they are striving for
a certain homogeniety of tone, producing smart, clinical playing
- cool, but without being overly frigid. Among themselves, the teamwork
in the interchanging passages is very good indeed. Rilling, as he
has done with Faust, again gives them their own heads, allowing
them to run with the music and contenting himself with pragmatic
and effective instrumental support.
It
would be very churlish to make a comparison and say here that this
is actually the better of the two violin concerto albums in the
Bachakademie, the other one (Violin
Concertos BWV 1041-1043, Hänssler CD 92.125) having already
been previously reviewed.
Both
albums don't also offer much in terms of playing time. By modern
standards, fifty-two minutes of recorded material is a mean offer
but this is, inevitably, the result of segmentation in the Bachakademie.
(The other violin concerto disc is even more unbelievable at forty-three
minutes.) All other things being equal - same composer, same soloists,
same orchestra, same conductor, even the same approach - there would
be little to choose between the two.
But,
of course, not all things are equal: apart from slightly more mileage
in timing, this also has the offer of something less frequently
heard and thus providing greater reward for the intrepid listener.
This disc, after all, features conjectural reconstructions of what
Bach might have written - cleverly and very convincingly
done, I have to admit, but ersatz nonetheless. On the basis of performance
alone, there are no grounds for hesitation, but the shortage of
the programme content must surely raise some qualms.
BENJAMIN
CHEE has had a really good Bach Year, nonetheless.
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830:
22.11.2000 © Benjamin Chee
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