The Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello
by Johann Sebastian Bach are
acclaimed as some of the greatest works ever written for solo cello. They were most
likely composed during the period 1717-1723, when Bach served as a Kapellmeister
in Cöthen.
The suites contain a great variety of technical
devices and a wide range of emotional content.
The suites are among Bach's most popular works today, resulting in a
wide variety of recordings and interpretations.
Because of their popularity, the suites have been transcribed for
numerous instruments, including the violin, viola, double bass,
bass clarinet,
horn, trombone,
tuba, saxophone
and guitar.
Scholars do not agree on when, exactly, the
Suites were composed. Most believe,
however, that the cello suites were composed before 1720, which is the date on
the violin sonatas.
The suites were not widely known before the
1900s, and for a long time it was generally thought that the pieces were
intended to be études. There were even attempts to compose piano
accompaniments to them, most notably by the composer
Robert
Schumann. Pablo Casals, however, is credited for
increasing their popularity. After discovering Grützmacher's edition in a thrift shop, Casals began studying and
performing the works, although it was 35 years before he agreed to record the
pieces. Their popularity soared soon after, and Casals' original recording is
still widely available today.
Unlike Bach's violin
sonatas, no autograph manuscript survives, thus ruling out the use
of an official performance edition. By using secondary sources such as the
hand-written copy by Bach’s second wife, Anna Magdalena, passable editions have
been published. Unfortunately, these
sources were terribly inaccurate in the placement of slurs and other
articulations. As a result, many
interpretations of the suites exist, with no singularly accepted version.
The suites are in six movements each, and have
the following structure and order of movements.
Scholars believe that Bach wanted the Cello
Suites to be considered as a whole, rather than an arbitrary set of
pieces. Compared to Bach's other suite collections,
the cello suites are the most consistent in order of their movements. The suites increase in technical complexity
and emotional richness from the first to the last.
The Prelude, mainly
consists of arpeggiated chords.
It is probably the best known movement from the entire set of suites and is
regularly heard on television and in films. The second Minuet is one of only two movements in the six suites that does not contain any chords.
Most students begin with this suite as it is assumed to be easier to play than
the others, both in terms of the technique required and considerations of
interpretation.