Violoncello da spalla
Bach’s Cello Suites
Date & Location
Composer
Johann Sebastian Bach
Selections to include:
Suite no. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007
Suite no. 6 in C Major, BWV 1012
Chamber Series
Few have heard of the violoncello da spalla; fewer still have heard the instrument in a live performance or commercial recording. It looks like a smaller version of the cello and is strapped to the body over the shoulder (spalla), resting across the upper chest. The instrument existed during Bach’s lifetime, and there is speculation that several of his cantatas dating from the 1720s (with instrumental parts labelled “violoncello piccolo”) may have been composed with such an instrument in mind. The same has been conjectured about Bach’s Sixth Cello Suite, which will be presented in this performance. Andrew Gonzalez, praised by The Strad magazine for his “warm-hearted playing and mellow tone,” performs a rich program on this fascinating instrument, opening a revelatory view of two of Bach’s iconic cello suites.
...Chamber Series
Few have heard of the violoncello da spalla; fewer still have heard the instrument in a live performance or commercial recording. It looks like a smaller version of the cello and is strapped to the body over the shoulder (spalla), resting across the upper chest. The instrument existed during Bach’s lifetime, and there is speculation that several of his cantatas dating from the 1720s (with instrumental parts labelled “violoncello piccolo”) may have been composed with such an instrument in mind. The same has been conjectured about Bach’s Sixth Cello Suite, which will be presented in this performance. Andrew Gonzalez, praised by The Strad magazine for his “warm-hearted playing and mellow tone,” performs a rich program on this fascinating instrument, opening a revelatory view of two of Bach’s iconic cello suites.
