Book Description

"The three sonatas for viola da gamba and harpsichord, BWV 1027-1029, by Johann Sebastian Bach hold a significant place in Bach's oeuvre, and, by comparison to similar works of his contemporaries, in baroque music history. This paper sheds light on differing hypotheses on their origin and collates the most current and compelling scholarship on these sonatas. Long-perpetuated assumptions regarding their history are questioned, and each work's style and form are analyzed...This project serves as partial completion of a project that culminates in a recording of these sonatas arranged specifically for string trio: viola, violin, and cello. This paper also examines these works' histories--their extant scoring for other instruments (in the case of BWV 1027 in G major) by Bach and possible origins as works for other instruments--further underscoring the historical precedent of their arrangement for different instrumentations."--Introduction.