Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas for Violin

Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin Johann Sebastian Bach (composer)

Composed: 1717-1720 Published: 1802 First Performed: ? Peak: -- Sales (in millions): -- Genre: classical > chamber music

Parts/Movements: Sonata No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001 Partita No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002 Sonata No. 2 in A minor, BWV 1003 Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004 Sonata No. 3 in C major BWV 1005 Partita No. 3 in E major, BWV 1006 Average Duration: around 2 hours

Rating: 4.786 out of 5.00 (average of 5 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Composer: “Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) was a German composer of the Baroque period and widely considered one of the greatest composers in the Western canon. He carefully studied the work of his forebears and contemporaries, incorporating intricate counterpoint and harmonic innovations into a sophisticated style that represents the zenith of the Baroque tradition. Though he wrote predominantly religious music-including several passions and over 200 cantatas-he is most celebrated today for his profoundly moving instrumental music, including concertos, suites, and sonatas, including many for strings-such as his Cello Suites and Sonatas and Partitas for violin.” JS About the Work: He composed “three sonatas (restrained ‘church sonatas’ with fugal elements) and three partitas (essentially ‘dance’ suites).” JS He “elevated both forms to a deeply emotional and reverent height” JS by setting “up elaborate schemes that utilize the violin’s full range of sounds.” TM The works “firmly established the technical capability of the violin as a solo instrument” WK serving “as archetypes for solo violin pieces by later generations of composers.” WK It isn’t certain when work began on the pieces, although 1717 seems most likely. WK It is possible, however, that Bach began composition as early as 1703 when he met Johann Paul von Westhoff, “a violinist and composer who published a number of works for unaccompanied violin.” WK The set was completed by 1720 but wasn’t published until 1802. It is unknown if they were even performed during Bach’s lifetime (he died in 1750). They didn’t really become celebrated until violinist Joseph Joachim started performing them. Sonata No. 1: “Though the key signature of the manuscript suggests D minor, such was a notational convention in the Baroque period, and therefore does not necessarily imply that the piece is in the Dorian mode. The second movement, the fugue, would later be reworked for the organ (in the Prelude and Fugue, BWV 539) and the lute (Fugue, BWV 1000), with the latter being two bars longer than the violin version.” WK Partita No. 1: “This partita substitutes a bourrée (marked Tempo di Borea) for the gigue. Each movement is followed by a variation (double in French).” WK Partita No. 2: “In the original manuscript, Bach marked Segue la Corrente at the end of Allemanda. The monumental Chaconne, the last and most famous movement of the suite, was regarded as "the greatest structure for solo violin that exists" by Yehudi Menuhin. It involves a set of variations based on a simple phrase repeated in harmonic progression in the bass line (ground bass).” WK Sonata No. 3: “The opening movement of the work introduced a peaceful, slow stacking up of notes, a technique once thought to be impossible on bowed instruments. The fugue is the most complex and extensive of the three, with the subject derived from the chorale Komm, heiliger Geist, Herre Gott. Bach employs many contrapuntal techniques, including a stretto, an inversion, as well as diverse examples of double counterpoint.” WK

Reviews: JS Johnson String Instrument TM Tom Moon (2008). 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die. Workman Publishing Company, Inc.: New York, NY. Page 34. WK Wikipedia Related DMDB Links: First posted 2/21/2026.