Bach Cello Suites

[aukhawk]

Anyone know this recording? I like what I hear, tuneful humorful accented playing.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mlDatl2qCNzC-YJ0GH6Hhk1lyYkQkS0ms

Yes, it's fresh, dancing and brilliant. I like it very much.

That's a great find - lovely plangent tones.


Cello Suites: Leonardo Luckert

Just a reminder that this is the preferred thread for general discussion of Bach's Cello Suites including any recent new finds.  Messages #269-288 from the other thread really belong here.

[staxomega]

There was some discussion of Malov and repeats in one of the threads, this is the CD I have and he takes all the repeats.

[prémont]

There was some discussion of Malov and repeats in one of the threads, this is the CD I have and he takes all the repeats.

Yes, this is the recording i referred to in post 633 of this thread.

Malov also recorded the second suite with all the repeats here:

https://www.amazon.de/Ligeti-Sergey-Barockvioline-Violoncello-spalla/dp/B06ZZGBCGW/ref=sr_1_1?__mk_de_DE=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&dchild=1&keywords=sergey+malov+bach&qid=1633979292&s=music&sr=1-1

[staxomega]

Yes, this is the recording i referred to in post 633 of this thread.

Malov also recorded the second suite with all the repeats here:

https://www.amazon.de/Ligeti-Sergey-Barockvioline-Violoncello-spalla/dp/B06ZZGBCGW/ref=sr_1_1?__mk_de_DE=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&dchild=1&keywords=sergey+malov+bach&qid=1633979292&s=music&sr=1-1

Apologies. I knew this was being discussed somewhere, I just missed a bunch of posts when reading this subforum by unread posts.

[vers la flamme]

If someone can recommend to me a great recording of the Bach Cello Suites, preferably on a period or reproduction Baroque cello, I would be much obliged  0:)

[Que]

If someone can recommend to me a great recording of the Bach Cello Suites, preferably on a period or reproduction Baroque cello, I would be much obliged  0:)

Well, that's opening a can of worms...   Ready yourself for dozens of completely different suggestions!

As you know, period performances is my thing.

My shortlist is Anner Bijlsma II (Sony) and Paolo Beschi (Winter & Winter).

Good luck and enjoy the journey!

[bioluminescentsquid]

I think the suites benefits from having a lot of recordings, it's such "open" music that there are many successful ways to approach them. For the more uneccentric ones, I keep coming back to Bijlsma/Bylsma 1 (I love-hate 2, much more subtle but lacks the direct ruggedness of the first one that I like so much), other ones I've liked are Sergei Istomin and Lucia Swarts.

For more eccentric ones, I remember hearing and liking Oreste De Tommaso (who holds his bow in the gamba style - actually likely the predominant cello bowhold employed in the early 18th century, with different results in articulation) or Mauro Valli's bright and florid Bach in Bologna. (I found out about both of these on this thread, by the way!)

[Madiel]

If someone can recommend to me a great recording of the Bach Cello Suites, preferably on a period or reproduction Baroque cello, I would be much obliged  0:)

David Watkin.

[vers la flamme]

Well, that's opening a can of worms...   Ready yourself for dozens of completely different suggestions!

As you know, period performances is my thing.

My shortlist is Anner Bijlsma II (Sony) and Paolo Beschi (Winter & Winter).

Good luck and enjoy the journey!

If you wanna know a damn tragedy, I bought Bylsma II (used, from Ebay) and was getting ready to rip it to my computer yesterday when I realized that the disc inside was not Bylsma or Bach at all but Michael Tilson Thomas conducting Ives' third symphony -___- (which I already have)

[Mandryka]

If you wanna know a damn tragedy, I bought Bylsma II (used, from Ebay) and was getting ready to rip it to my computer yesterday when I realized that the disc inside was not Bylsma or Bach at all but Michael Tilson Thomas conducting Ives' third symphony -___- (which I already have)

Bylsma II is divisive. It would be interesting to know why its advocates think it's successful and why its detractors think it's unsuccessful. I don't have an opinion.

[vers la flamme]

Bylsma II is divisive. It would be interesting to know why its advocates think it's successful and why its detractors think it's unsuccessful.

Bylsma I is a bit hard to find these days, and seems to be more popular. I'm a big fan of his playing. Our Traverso turned me onto his work a couple years ago, shortly before Bylsma's death actually.

[Mandryka]

Bylsma I is a bit hard to find these days, and seems to be more popular. I'm a big fan of his playing. Our Traverso turned me onto his work a couple years ago, shortly before Bylsma's death actually.

Well I just listened to the sarabande of 1012 in I and II and on the basis of that single pair of observations I'll propose this hypothesis: Bylsma I is articulated like song, long phrases.  Bylsma II is articulated more like speech - short phrases. Bylsma II is also rather more calm than dramatic. Arguably the phrasing of II has been influential - Wispelway III, Cocset, maybe others.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Is this Bylssma's first or second recording of the suites?  I remember (years ago) hearing a different recording of him playing it at a friend's house, but it wasn't available at the store that I went to.  I suspect that this one is his second recording of them:



PD

[Mandryka]

Is this Bylssma's first or second recording of the suites?  I remember (years ago) hearing a different recording of him playing it at a friend's house, but it wasn't available at the store that I went to.  I suspect that this one is his second recording of them:



PD

That's the second.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

That's the second.

Thanks!  What does the first one look like?  If I recall correctly, he's recorded it at least three times?   

PD

[Selig]

Thanks!  What does the first one look like?  If I recall correctly, he's recorded it at least three times?   

PD

Looks like this



or this, remastered: (this is the cover to look for if you're using Spotify)



There is no complete 3rd recording that I know of, only a 3rd recording of the 1st and 5th suites on this DVD:

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Looks like this



or this, remastered: (this is the cover to look for if you're using Spotify)



There is no complete 3rd recording that I know of, only a 3rd recording of the 1st and 5th suites on this DVD:

Thank you Selig! 

PD

[Mandryka]

Thank you Selig! 

PD

There is a third one, but it has not been released commercially, made of concert performances in The Hague and in Leiden in 1998. If anyone wants it they can PM me.

[bioluminescentsquid]

Well I just listened to the sarabande of 1012 in I and II and on the basis of that single pair of observations I'll propose this hypothesis: Bylsma I is articulated like song, long phrases.  Bylsma II is articulated more like speech - short phrases. Bylsma II is also rather more calm than dramatic. Arguably the phrasing of II has been influential - Wispelway III, Cocset, maybe others.

Also listening to the Sarabandes of #6 in Bylsma I and II. I'd conclude the opposite! In II he seems to consciously control the bow and shape the phrases more and has a more even sound throughout the duration of each note, as opposed to I where he seems to let each bow stroke have its own natural articulation resulting in mostly tapered phrases. While he does it in both recordings, II also has a more "modern" HIP style of using vibrato as an ornament at the end of long held notes.

Notably B. apparently used a modern (or maybe 19th century) style bow for the second recording - which I guess allowed him to have much more even phrases throughout each bow. (I don't know if this is true as well for #6 which is obviously played on a different, 5 stringed instrument)

I might just be spouting nonsense, I might need an experienced string player to correct me here.

[Mandryka]

Also listening to the Sarabandes of #6 in Bylsma I and II. I'd conclude the opposite! In II he seems to consciously control the bow and shape the phrases more and has a more even sound throughout the duration of each note, as opposed to I where he seems to let each bow stroke have its own natural articulation resulting in mostly tapered phrases. While he does it in both recordings, II also has a more "modern" HIP style of using vibrato as an ornament at the end of long held notes.

Notably B. apparently used a modern (or maybe 19th century) style bow for the second recording - which I guess allowed him to have much more even phrases throughout each bow. (I don't know if this is true as well for #6 which is obviously played on a different, 5 stringed instrument)

I might just be spouting nonsense, I might need an experienced string player to correct me here.

I could have got the recordings mixed up of course, but I'd be very interested to know what this means: let each bow stroke have its own natural articulation.