Happy Birthday, Bach! Share Your Johann Sebastian Bach Performances! 
Hey fellow toneBuddies!! 
We all know and appreciate the genius of Johann Sebastian Bach, one of the most influential composers in the Baroque period. His music continues to inspire musicians and audiences alike. In celebration of his contributions to the world of music and the exciting live stream with multiple DG recording artist Göran Söllscher, we're excited to announce a "Bach Mini Challenge" for our community!
The Challenge:
We invite you to record and upload a video of yourself playing a piece composed by J.S. Bach. Choose! We're eager to see your unique interpretations and skillful renditions of Bach's timeless masterpieces.
Need some inspiration? Please check out Nigel North's class on "How To Play Bach" and other classes by him and Paul O'Dette!
How to participate:
Record a video of yourself performing a piece by J.S. Bach.
Upload your video to your preferred platform (e.g., YouTube, Vimeo, etc.).
- Share the link to your video in the comments section below.
- F eel free to add a brief description of the piece you chose and why you love it.
Interact and engage:
Don't forget to check out the performances of your fellow toneBuddies! Show your support by leaving comments, constructive feedback, and appreciation for their efforts. Let's encourage each other to improve and enjoy the beauty of these historical eras.
Reward:
There's no specific prize for this challenge, but it's an opportunity to showcase your talent, receive feedback, and connect with fellow Bach enthusiasts Who knows? You might even make some new friends along the way!
Need inspiration?
Can't make it to the live stream roundtable discussion that inspired this challenge, don't worry! The stream will be recorded, you can rewatch it at any time!
Ready, set, play!
We can't wait to see your Bach submissions. Let's keep the spirit of these eras alive and thriving in our community!
Happy playing, everyone! 
-
Try again
-
joosje It’s so fun that Eric’s performance inspired you to post the double. I really enjoyed them both!
-
joosje That was really nice, Joosje. That pair (Sarabande and double) is one of my favorites and a pair that I try to keep in my repertoire. You have inspired me to return to it again. Thanks for presenting this.
-
joosje A beautiful complement to Eric's video, Joosje! (Note: auto-spell wants to call you 'Jodie'.) That's an interesting story about Weiss and a colleague performing this as a duet. I do wonder if it's apocryphal though - after all a 'double' is not, as far as I know, intended as a sort of 'contre-partie'. It would be interesting to try though!
-
joosje Nicely played, Is that a seventh string I see on your guitar? Are you able to use it in this piece?
-
Michael Shirk thanks, Michael. And, no, I don’t use it in this piece. This is a transcription (in the original key), from a solo violin piece, and it doesn’t require a wider range (at least in my view). I can use it as a low B, as in Bach 998, sometimes A or D. Coste and Mertz sometimes use the 7th string. It’s nice also in duets.
-
-
Sharing my recording of the Prelude in D-minor BWV 999. This is the "fast" version that I am playing here, I was looking to apply some dynamics and color (with more or less success). Most interpretations I saw go from measure 18 to 22 in a continuous crescendo. I prefer to play the "climax" bar 22 more piano though.
-
Calin Lupa That's great, Calin! I am impressed by how well you kept it together at such a fast tempo.
-
Calin Lupa great performance Calin . Your tempo is impressive, sounds so fresh and energetic.
-
Calin Lupa Great, Calin. That is an impressive tempo which works well with this prelude.
-
Calin Lupa Nice performance, Calin! Your dynamics work well here. It makes good sense to follow your own intuition about such things, I think. Trying to imitate what others do (especially without 'feeling' it oneself) is rarely successful.
-
Calin Lupa Well played. I would personally suggest playing it with a little more ponticello sound.
-
Thank you all for your kind comments and suggestions. Joseph Lee regarding the color, my intention was to start more tasto, like a wave or atmosphere piece, and then change between ponticello and tasto as the piece progresses, haven't succeeded very well though. More ponticello for the entire piece will work well too.
Eric Phillips keeping it together at that speed is a challenge. I do practice dotted rhythms and dotted groups like 4-4-4, 4-8 , and 8-4 as recommended by martin in his class, that helps.
On this recording I did not use planting and no dampening of the base, I'll try to post soon a recording where I use those.
-
-
Bach Prelude to 1st Cello Suite. Duarte edition with modifications suggested by Jason Vieaux. I haven't worked on this piece for 50 years, and its still in the reconstruction stage, but I've always enjoyed it.
-
Marilyn Blodget beautiful Marilyn, such an iconic piece , very enjoyable to listen to.
-
Calin Lupa Thanks Calin! I really enjoyed your 999 as well. Your fingers were flying!
-
Marilyn Blodget Beautiful, Marilyn! I have always played this from the Duarte fingering as well, mainly because I bought it eons ago, so I may as well use it. That said, I always change a few things, probably never playing it with exactly the same fingering twice. I bet Jason Vieaux has given you some wonderful insights about the music!
-
Marilyn Blodget wonderful Marilyn. It’s such and iconic piece for cello, and it works so well on guitar. Thank you for sharing your interpretation with us.
-
joosje Thanks Joosje!
-
Marilyn Blodget Beautiful, Marilyn. And for being in 'reconstruction', that is amazing.
I think this piece, in particular, works very well on guitar in a very different way than it does on cello.
-
Jack Stewart Thanks Jack! Yes, I agree. This is a fun one to play.
-
Marilyn Blodget I really love this piece! The notes have nice separation and clarity while also being legato and your dynamics are great! Do you have any suggestions as to where I can get the sheet music for this? I was actually hoping to try this one out myself!
-
Austin Flemming Thanks Austin! I used the Duarte arrangement, but changed a few things. I play measure 11 in the 4th position (play the last b in measure 10 open, and last a on 4th string to transition.) Beat 3 measure 11, I play the low D# instead of B. The rest is the same except I play 6ths instead of 3rds in measures 37 and 38. Good luck and have fun!
-
Marilyn Blodget Can’t wait to see playing Allemande after this!
-
-
https://youtu.be/kRY6wPCKIAo
My version of the famous prelude BWV 1007 I recorded some months ago. Hope that you like it!-
Stefano Tempera That was great, Stefano. You played that prelude at a pretty healthy clip and and maintained really good tone and phrasing. Beautiful.
-
