Amazing pieces of classical music - 48
What in the world was going on through Johann Sebastian Bach's head when he composed his Fifth Brandenburg's Concerto's Cadenza? It sounds completely different from most of his other keyboard works. The first written out cadenza in any keyboard work ever, well, it's a generally accepted notion that it is. What we are certain is that Bach wrote the second version of his Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, BWV 1050.2 (formerly 1050), for harpsichord, flute and violin as soloists, and an orchestral accompaniment consisting of strings and continuo on 24 March 1721, and dedicated it to Margrave Christian Ludwig of Brandenburg-Schwedt. The margravial title was given to princes of the Prussian Royal House and did not express a territorial status.
When Kapellmeister Bach was sent to Berlin by his patron Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Köthen in 1719, the composer met with the music-loving Margrave. Bach appreciated Christian Ludwig's interest in his compositions and two years later dedicated his Six Concerts Avec plusieurs Instruments (BWV 1046–1051) to him. That the concerti were never played in the Margrave's lifetime, as they were considered too difficult for his court musicians to play, is rather absurd for the Margrave was an excellent administrator and remained highly interested in the musical works of Georg Friederich Händel whilst also been able to maintain a court orchestra at the Berlin City Palace during his brother's, King Friederich the Great's reign.
The Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, 1st movement cadenza is the cadenza that we're looking at right now. A cadenza is a part in a piece of music where the rest of the players in the ensemble stop playing, and a soloist plays a solo for a bit. In this case, it's for more than three minutes long, which one can take it as being Gospel truth, is extremely unusual. Moreover, even more unusual given the times in which Bach lived and wrote this piece. There wasn't a real moment taken yet for letting soloists shine. This cadenza is, historically speaking, the first kind of music that resembled what would eventually become a keyboard or rather piano concerto (that is, for course, a piano soloist playing with an orchestra) later on.
The reason some think that the cadenza is this long is that Bach had just bought a new harpsichord and wanted to show it off. I don't think so here either, but Bach did elevate the instrument further still, with his elaborate, cadenza-like passage for solo harpsichord at the end of the first movement of the Fifth Brandenburg Concerto. This cadenza is so masterfully written that one can but adore how it gets a bit crazy at 1:54, and even more frenetic at 2:17, but nevertheless, Bach is using this all to set up the return, which he does at 2:45. At that particular moment, the ensemble knows very well it's getting close to time to come back into action
[media=https://youtu.be/Epn2MTDF_t8]
[media=https://youtu.be/I71IIddHwXU]
[media=https://youtu.be/Je0In3qPUzA]
When Kapellmeister Bach was sent to Berlin by his patron Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Köthen in 1719, the composer met with the music-loving Margrave. Bach appreciated Christian Ludwig's interest in his compositions and two years later dedicated his Six Concerts Avec plusieurs Instruments (BWV 1046–1051) to him. That the concerti were never played in the Margrave's lifetime, as they were considered too difficult for his court musicians to play, is rather absurd for the Margrave was an excellent administrator and remained highly interested in the musical works of Georg Friederich Händel whilst also been able to maintain a court orchestra at the Berlin City Palace during his brother's, King Friederich the Great's reign.
The Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, 1st movement cadenza is the cadenza that we're looking at right now. A cadenza is a part in a piece of music where the rest of the players in the ensemble stop playing, and a soloist plays a solo for a bit. In this case, it's for more than three minutes long, which one can take it as being Gospel truth, is extremely unusual. Moreover, even more unusual given the times in which Bach lived and wrote this piece. There wasn't a real moment taken yet for letting soloists shine. This cadenza is, historically speaking, the first kind of music that resembled what would eventually become a keyboard or rather piano concerto (that is, for course, a piano soloist playing with an orchestra) later on.
The reason some think that the cadenza is this long is that Bach had just bought a new harpsichord and wanted to show it off. I don't think so here either, but Bach did elevate the instrument further still, with his elaborate, cadenza-like passage for solo harpsichord at the end of the first movement of the Fifth Brandenburg Concerto. This cadenza is so masterfully written that one can but adore how it gets a bit crazy at 1:54, and even more frenetic at 2:17, but nevertheless, Bach is using this all to set up the return, which he does at 2:45. At that particular moment, the ensemble knows very well it's getting close to time to come back into action
[media=https://youtu.be/Epn2MTDF_t8]
[media=https://youtu.be/I71IIddHwXU]
[media=https://youtu.be/Je0In3qPUzA]
