These are the six Partitas that form the first part of Bach's
Clavierübung, which
was published by Bach between 1726 and 1730 while at Leipzig.
Perhaps because the composer's first such publication, he seems
to have been cautious; only in 1731 did he collect the six pieces
(BWVs 825 to 830) and advertise them as vehicles for keyboard
practice (Clavierübung) consisting of preludes and five
or six dance movements - a format that had been familiar for
several centuries.
What's more, some of the movements in these Partitas had previous
incarnations: the two
Minuets from Number 1 are to be
found in a manuscript containing pieces by various members of
Bach's family, the
Kleine Clavier-Stücke. From the
original (1725) version of the G major sonata for violin and
harpsichord, BWV 1019, come the
Courante and
Gavotte of
Number 6. In the same year, 1725, Bach began composition of his
Clavierbüchlein for
Anna Magdalena; this contained the first versions of Partitas
Number 3 and 6.
The model for compositions such as Bach's
Clavierübung was
not new: in the last decade of the previous century his predecessor
at Leipzig, Johann Kuchnau (1660 - 1722), had published a highly
successful
Neuer Clavier Übung. Indeed, Bach's set
may even have been (partly) in tribute to the older musician.
In any case, the originally French format of four or more dance
suites (
Allemande,
Courante,
Sarabande and
Gigue)
probably preceded by a Prelude had been independently established
in German-speaking musical circles by Froberger by the middle
of the seventeenth century.
By and large this is the sequence that Bach followed. But each
one departs to some extent from the base: no two of these Partitas
are the same in form or sequence. Number 1 has two
Minuets before
the closing
Gigue, Number 2 begins with a short
Sinfonia and
ends with a
Rondeau (misspelled
Rondeaux in the
booklet)
and
Capriccio. Number 3 has a
Fantasia at
the start and intersperses a
Burlesca and
Scherzo before
the
Gigue. The fourth Partita begins with a fast
Ouverture and
has an
Aria between its
Courante and
Sarabande and
a
Minuet between the latter and the
Gigue. Number
5 begins with a
Præambulum and has both a movement
in
Tempo di Minuetta and
Passepied before the
Gigue.
The sixth starts with a fugued
Toccata and again has an
Air as
fourth and
Tempo di Gavotta as sixth movements.
Yet careful listening, which Australian-born Nicholas Parle makes
natural yet essential, reveals what all this variation really
implies: this is very original, inspired and thoughtful music.
Bach is not reproducing structures according to a formula. Still
less - despite their name - is he really reducing the work to
mechanical exercise pieces. We can be sure that Bach fully intended
these choices and orders - at the least for dramatic, thematic
and tonal tension and integrity.
Such pieces as the
Fantasia the start of Partita 3 [CD.2
tr.1], however, are typical of Parle's very solid and inspired
approach to this music. It's businesslike and efficient without
a whiff of the perfunctory; sensitive and thoughtful without
romanticism; driven and purposeful without a hint of hurry. On
the one hand, each movement is treated as a gem in its own right.
On the other his playing unobtrusively places it in the wider
context of the Partita (a synonym for Suite, after all) as a
whole. Listen to the rhythmic intensity coupled with unalloyed
delight in the fifth Partita's brief
Courante [CD.3 tr.3],
for example. It acquires greater meaning when followed by Parle's
equally restrained yet taut approach to the
Sarabande that
follows. And the arresting dotted quavers of the
Tempo di
Minuetta.
Although perhaps not conveying the detached spring of a Verlet
(Philips Duo 442559); certainly not the wayward imprint of a
Gould, Parle's style is closer to Suzuki (Bis 1313 and 1314)
and never lacks vigour or energy … listen to the way
the third Partita's
Courante [CD.2 tr.3] unfolds and,
as befits the origins of the movement, then never loses steam
or breath. The same superlatives apply to the way Parle effortlessly
manages a sense of forward motion and serious intent, yet an
intent to enjoy and celebrate life, in the
Gigue in the
same Partita [CD.2 tr.7]; and, for that matter in the
Ouverture of
Number 4. But never suggests rush or haste … listen to
the end of the
Courante in Partita Number 4 [CD.2 tr.10];
here Parle brings out the French as well as the Bachian idiom.
Yet he does so without extraneous gestures to draw attention
to his highly accomplished style - as is the case throughout
these three CDs. Splendid. For evidence of Parle's level of technique,
the sixth Partita's
Toccata [CD.3 tr.8] almost says it
all … balance, attack, poise, accuracy and a steely yet
transparent momentum fully in accord with the harpsichord's timbre.
In his attention to phrasing and structure, Parle has a gift
of conjuring up the movement and vitality of Bach's music. And
it's consistently done with the unselfconscious aplomb and
gravitas of
a performer like Tureck herself, whose performances on Doremi
(7826), although of some age now, have that same unobtrusive
weight. Parle quietly commands our attention. Once we've inclined
our heads to listen, we don't go back to what we were doing,
so to speak: we always involuntarily turn to face … less
Parle as interpreter; but to concentrate wholly once more on
Bach as genius.
The harpsichord played by Parle is by the Australian William
Bright after a Ruckers original from the early/mid seventeenth
century. It's a powerful instrument with a rounded yet distinct,
somewhat reticent, sound profile that's well suited to the precision
and impact of Bach's music. The acoustic is close - but intimate,
rather than enclosed.
The liner notes are informative, though they lack, perhaps, more
ruminative examination of the non-technical import of these very
uplifting, memorable, influential and inspiring works by Bach.
There are literally dozens of good recordings of these works
- on modern as well as period instruments. Pinnock on Hänssler
Classic (92115) is a good first choice. And for a contemporary
and fresh account with which you could happily live this latest
offering from ABC Classics should certainly get a look in at
that level.
Mark Sealey
Nicholas Parle (harpsichord) 
