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Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Brandenburg Concerto No. 1, BWV 1046, F Major
Bach enjoyed his most prestigious musical appointment while employed in Cöthen from 1717-1723. In the spring of 1721, Bach dedicated his six Brandenburg Concerti to Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg. Since there were not enough accomplished musicians in his court, the concerti were first performed by the orchestra of Cöthen.
The Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 BWV 1046 in F Major is a piece which reflects how Bach employed several instrument groups in contrast to one another. The emphasis on the colorful combination of winds (horns, oboes, and bassoon) illustrates both the tradition of Vivaldi's concerti and that of the Venetian canzona (a form which makes use of contrasting instrumental choirs, known as orchestra concertos or concerto-symphonies).
In the Concerto No. 1 themes are exchanged between constrasting instrument groups in separate sections or movements, as heard in the Menuetto. An instrument group states a theme and then an answer is provided, like a responsorial. An example of how the winds are contrasted between full orchestral passages is readily heard in the last movement, Menuetto. There are two separate trios in this movement, which feature the oboes, horns, and bassoon without the use of the strings.
As is the case with Concerto No. 1, emphasis on wind instruments is found also with the German music tradition of the Stadtpfeifer. The translation is "town piper" and it was a salaried position established in Germany in the late 14th century. The Stadtpfeifer performed at civic events.
Bach featured the solo violino piccolo in the Concerto No. 1. Today many performers prefer the transposed version of the violin part, so that the performer can avoid the penetrating quality of scordatura (in this case, tuning the violino piccolo an interval of a minor third above the normal tuning of the modern violin). These performances use the transposed version.
-- program notes by Laurien Jones