Isaac Stern - J.S. Bach: Violin Concertos, BWV 1041/42; Double Concerto; Concerto for Violin and Oboe

Title: J.S. Bach: Violin Concertos, BWV 1041/42; Double Concerto; Concerto for Violin and Oboe Artist: Isaac Stern Release Date: 2004 Label: Sony Classical Essent Duration: 72:09 Album Type(s): composition (work) description UPC: 827969301722 Genre: Concerto Total Copies: 0 Members Wishing: 1 Number of Discs/SwapaCD Credits: 1

1. Concerto for violin, strings & continuo No. 1 in A minor, BWV 1041
   - I. []
2. Concerto for violin, strings & continuo No. 1 in A minor, BWV 1041
   - II. Andante
3. Concerto for violin, strings & continuo No. 1 in A minor, BWV 1041
   - III. Allegro assai
4. Concerto for violin, strings & continuo No. 2 in E major, BWV 1042
   - I. Allegro
5. Concerto for violin, strings & continuo No. 2 in E major, BWV 1042
   - II. Adagio
6. Concerto for violin, strings & continuo No. 2 in E major, BWV 1042
   - III. Allegro assai
7. Concerto for 2 violins, strings & continuo in D minor ("Double"), BWV 1043
   - I. Vivace
8. Concerto for 2 violins, strings & continuo in D minor ("Double"), BWV 1043
   - II. Largo, ma non tanto
9. Concerto for 2 violins, strings & continuo in D minor ("Double"), BWV 1043
   - III. Allegro
10. Concerto for oboe & violin (or 2 violins), strings & continuo (reconstruction), BWV 1060R
    - I. Allegro
11. Concerto for oboe & violin (or 2 violins), strings & continuo (reconstruction), BWV 1060R
    - II. Adagio
12. Concerto for oboe & violin (or 2 violins), strings & continuo (reconstruction), BWV 1060R
    - III. Allegro
13. Partita for solo violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002
    - Sarabande - Double

With growing excitement over the possibilities of performing Bach's music in historically appropriate ways, it's easy to forget that there's still a huge public for what used to be called mainstream performances. The Bach concerto performances by Isaac Stern, recorded in the 1980s, are now on their third reissue go-round, so it's obvious that for many people they fill the bill just fine. Perhaps the strongest performance of the group is that of the Concerto for two violins and orchestra, BWV 1043, pairing Stern with Itzhak Perlman in a 1980 live concert celebrating Stern's 60th birthday. Stern and Perlman brought out the best in each other, and the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Zubin Mehta on this occasion, brought bite and precision to bear on the score. In fact the double concerto, despite being recorded live at inglorious Avery Fisher Hall, finds the performers more surely on the same page than the two concertos, featuring more conventionally baroque accompaniment for Stern in the form of the English Chamber Orchestra under the baton of Alexander Schneider. The reconstructed Concerto in C minor for violin, oboe, and orchestra, BWV 1060, is also on hand in a performance conducted from the harpsichord by Leonard Bernstein, and the disc is rounded out by the Sarabande movement from the Partita No. 1 in B minor for violin solo, BWV 1002. There are plenty of other performances of these works out there, but Stern was one of the last century's most reliable violinists, and we wouldn't be surprised to see these performances back for a fourth reissue someday. ~ James Manheim, All Music Guide

Name Credits Alexander Schneider Conductor David Charles Johnson Liner Notes Don Hunstein Photography English Chamber Orchestra Orchestra Frank Schramm Photography Giulio Turturro Series Design, Cover Design Isaac Stern Violin Louise de la Fuente Reissue Producer Marc Offenbach Series Concept Paul Myers Producer Richard King Reissue Engineer, Reissue Editor Shane Bryanton Reissue Editor Todd Whitelock Engineer