Linus Roth - Bach: Complete Sonatas & Partitas (2024) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

CD1
01. Violin Sonata No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001: I. Adagio
02. Violin Sonata No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001: II. Fuga
03. Violin Sonata No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001 III. Siciliana
04. Violin Sonata No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001: IV. Presto
05. Violin Sonata No. 2 in A minor, BWV 1003: I. Grave
06. Violin Sonata No. 2 in A minor, BWV 1003: II. Fuga
07. Violin Sonata No. 2 in A minor, BWV 1003 III. Andante
08. Violin Sonata No. 2 in A minor, BWV 1003: IV. Allegro
09. Violin Sonata No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005: I. Adagio
10. Violin Sonata No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005: II. Fuga
11. Violin Sonata No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005: III. Largo
12. Violin Sonata No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005: IV. Allegro assai

CD2
01. Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: I. Allemanda
02. Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: II. Double
03. Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: III. Courante
04. Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: IV. Double
05. Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: V. Sarabande
06. Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: VI. Double
07. Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: VII. Tempo di Bourrée
08. Violin Partita No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002: VIII. Double
09. Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: I. Allemande
10. Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: II. Courante
11. Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: III. Sarabande
12. Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: IV. Gigue
13. Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: V. Ciaccona
14. Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: I. Preludio
15. Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: II. Loure
16. Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: III. Gavotte en Rondeau
17. Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: IV. Menuet I
18. Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: V. Menuet II
19. Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: VI. Bourrée
20. Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: VII. Gigue



The cycle of six solo Sonatas and Partitas by J.S. Bach is arguably one of the most powerful and most important compositions in musical history. These works have been with Linus Roth since he was nine years old, when he first learned the Gigue from the E major Partita, moving on by the age of twelve to the first Fugue in G minor to tackling at fifteen the Ciaconna, which represents a cosmos in its own right. By seventeen, Roth had finally learned the entire oeuvre for the first time and since then he is fortunate to have been able to grow as a musician through the constant and welcome challenge of interpreting these remarkable works.

Bach did not write ‘Six Solos’ on the cover of the score, but instead wrote ‘Sei Solo’ in Italian, which can have two meanings: the word ‘Sei‘ can be translated both as the number six and also as ‘You are’. ‘You are alone’ - Bach is unlikely to have left something so important to chance or to be playing a simple word game. This announcement – if it is even to be seen as a reminder from the composer to the performer - must be taken seriously and Linus has always viewed it as an invitation to interpret the music as freely as the musical text allows, which for him became a guiding principle in his quest for his own interpretation.

This recording was made during lockdown, in which all of our lives have had to be reduced to a minimum in almost every area. The chance to renew the intense preoccupation with this miraculous music in preparation for the recording was a huge privilege as it allowed Linus an escape into a spiritual freedom which helped me greatly on a personal level at this time.

Not only did Roth's teachers and the interpretations of great violinists have a huge influence on how he plays Bach, but also his preoccupation with the original text and with what is known as ‘historically informed performance practice’, in particular the experience of playing with the type of convex Baroque bow that was used in Bach’s time. Due to its bend and the different weight distribution, it has a different nature to the concave curved bow used today, which leads to a slight decrescendo phrasing where several notes are slurred together towards the tip of the bow. In Linus' opinion, the modern bow suits the modern violin better and enables a wider range of sounds, which is why he tries to translate these Baroque-style experiences to the modern bow.

While the slurs and other details in the musical text were not always adhered to in years gone by, further meticulous examinations of the text have resulted in music editions that faithfully reproduce all the details of Bach’s handwriting, yielding fascinating results.

In Bach’s hands, the Partita, a series of linked dance movements, is transformed from music with the specific purpose of entertainment into art music.

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