Bach: Sonatas & Partitas BWV 1001-1006 [Import]

Johann Sebastian Bach (Composer), Hopkinson Smith (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Hopkinson Smith
• Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach
• Audio CD (April 11, 2000)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Import
• Label: Astree
• ASIN: B00004SUM5
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #303,252 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Sonata for solo violin No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001: Adagio

2. Sonata for solo violin No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001: Fuga. Allegro

3. Sonata for solo violin No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001: Siciliano

4. Sonata for solo violin No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001: Presto

5. Partita for solo violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002: Allemande

6. Partita for solo violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002: Double

7. Partita for solo violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002: Courante

8. Partita for solo violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002: Double. Presto

9. Partita for solo violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002: Sarabande

10. Partita for solo violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002: Double

See all 16 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Partita for solo violin No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004: Allemande

2. Partita for solo violin No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004: Courante

3. Partita for solo violin No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004: Sarabande

4. Partita for solo violin No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004: Gigue

5. Partita for solo violin No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004: Chaconne

6. Sonata for solo violin No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005: Adagio

7. Sonata for solo violin No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005: Fuga. Alla breve

8. Sonata for solo violin No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005: Largo

9. Sonata for solo violin No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005: Allegro assai

10. Partita for solo violin No. 3 in E major, BWV 1006: Preludio

See all 16 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Pleasing, September 16, 2007

By 

Person "Person" (hmm) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bach: Sonatas & Partitas BWV 1001-1006 (Audio CD)

This recording is excellent. The lines are bought out and sustained as well as any guitarist could (and far better than any violinist can), the tone is sweet and delicate and thoroughly Baroque, the phrasing excellent. One of the best conceptions of these works.

15 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A nice recording, but not as good as I hoped..., June 9, 2000

By 

Kirk McElhearn "Freelance writer and translator" (A town in the French Alps) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

The Sonatas and Partitas are some of my favorite Bach works. They are actually the first Bach works I ever owned on LP, in the Henryk Szyerng recording. I have listened to them countless times, and can hum almost all of them note for note.

I have nothing againts transcriptions, and have, in recent times, enriched my collection with some interesting recordings. The Sonatas and Partitas seem to me a likely candidate for such transcriptions, and, indeed, many lutenists and guitarists have transcribed individual pieces, especially the 1004, with the famous chaconne.

Listening to the Smith recording, my first thought was, What is this music? For some reason it didn't SOUND like the Sonatas and Partitas, but sounded like some very nice Bach music on lute. I cannot put my finger on it, but his transcriptions seem to take all of the energy and force out of these pieces.

His playing is excellent, although often overdone - he sounds like he is trying more to show off than to be musical. There are many notes "added" so he can play very fast, which detracts from the overall musicality. I am sure that guitarists and lutenists will like this, but to me is sounds a bit muddled. He has totally changed the rhythm of the works, trying to impose lute phrasing on music that is too well-known, changing it a great deal. I just listened to part of the first sonata, in both violin (Kuijken) and lute, and the difference is obvious.

One think about the violin music is that it is a mere skeleton, and what makes it work is that Bach somehow manages to make you imagine the polyphony in your head. This is all lost on lute...

Now, while the above is negative, I do feel that this is a very good performance, a fine recording, but it just doesn't "do it" for me. If you are a plucked fan, you will love it, but if you are very familiar with the violin works, you may be disappointed.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Magical and Inspiring, September 1, 2000

By A Customer

The vision of Bach presented here by Hopkinson Smith is magical and inspiring. The sheer beauty of Smith's sound, his lines and overall construction brings tears even after repeated listening.

There is no need to dwell on personal likes or differences when hearing these recordings - you are taken along into a world of greatness both on the part of the composer and performer.

Do not hesitate, but buy it at once!