Description
Book SynopsisExplores musical, social, and religious implications of Bach's treatment of eighteenth-century musical hierarchies. This book argues that the Brandenburg Concertos are better understood not as an arbitrary collection of unrelated examples of "pure" instrumental music, but rather as a carefully compiled and meaningfully organized set.
Trade Review"The field of Bach studies has been greatly enriched by the appearance of [this book]... [It] is full of significant insights into the nature of the [Brandenburg Concertos]... [It] offers a fascinatingly fresh approach to these masterworks."--F. Ellsworth Peterson, Notes "For anyone who is interested in exploring the remarkably rewarding challenge Bach lays down for the human family, this is a careful, helpful, plausible, and perceptive analysis."--Paul Westermeyer, Church History "Full of important and closely argued discussions of individual aspects of chronology, source criticism, musical structure, and [Bach's] biographical background... [Marissen] is very informative on analytical and historical points, effectively demolishing many received beliefs, especially regarding chronology and source filiation."--Michael Talbot, Music and Letters
Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: Bach's Musical Contexts3Ch. 1Relationships between Scoring and Structure in Individual Concertos11The First Brandenburg Concerto16The First Movement of the Sixth Brandenburg Concerto35The Fourth Brandenburg Concerto62Ch. 2The Six Concertos as a Set77Ch. 3Lutheran Belief and Bach's Music111Appendix 1: Text-Critical Notes on Early Copies of the Sixth Brandenburg Concerto121Appendix 2: Notes on Bach's Notation of the Gamba Parts in the Margrave of Brandenburg's Dedication Score129Works Cited135Index145
