The Partitas were published one suite at a time, roughly every year for six years, between 1726 and 1731, before being issued together in the final year.
Performer Biography
Colin Tilney, the performer on this album, is an internationally recognized harpsichordist, clavichordist, and fortepianist with numerous solo recordings.
Compositional Technique
J.S. Bach's Partitas are considered some of the most virtuosic 18th-century harpsichord writing, surpassed only by his later Goldberg Variations.
Recording & Production
This recording was made in May 2019 at the Phillip T. Young Recital Hall, University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Composition History
The Partitas were J.S. Bach's first publication for solo harpsichord, intended to both impress amateur players and astonish professional organists and harpsichordists of North Germany.
Composer's Artistic Vision
J.S. Bach, in his Partitas, aimed to transform the traditional French and early German dance forms, giving his own suites a more massive scale and richer contrapuntal invention.
Instruments
The harpsichord used for this recording was built by Colin Booth in Wells, England, in 1984, modeled after a 1728 instrument by Christian Zell of Hamburg.
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