Reengineering Bach Series: J. S. Bach Cello Suites

Reengineering Bach

Note from the performer, Nikolai Kazantsev, fellow of Clare Hall:

I want to announce that this year I will complete the entire suite cycle, arguably one of the best music ever written for cello/string instruments.

These suites, composed in the early 18th century by the Europe-famous organist and not-yet-widely-known composer J.S. Bach, consist of five baroque dances, starting with a prelude in the chosen key. Notable, cellos were slightly different and even lost one string on the way to the 21st century, but the music has not lost a sense of purity and calmness.

Interestingly, the suites were lost from the music radar for two centuries and were rediscovered by Pau Casals - a legendary cellist who played them for Queen Victoria. Casals recommended playing each suite per day, starting from Monday to Saturday, which he did all his life until he lost mobility. Prelude in G (Suite I) is the most popular and is often heard in movies. Mstislav Rostropovich played Bourree 1 and 2 from Suite III on the spot during the fall of the Berlin Wall and was famously looking for a chair beforehand (a cellist needs a chair to play!).

Currently, academic researchers connect the storyline with the events of the life of Christ. (I recommend a book by Steven Isserlis, "The Bach Cello Suites: A Companion," to read through various connections and contextual information.)

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