The Cantata Trail

A listening journey through Bach's vocal music

The Brandenburg that never was

Concerto in C major, BWV 1061
for oboe, viola da gamba, violin and bassoon

A few weeks ago we heard the Concerto for two harpsichords, BWV 1061. Today, the ensemble Collegium 1704 performs an adaptation of this material in the format of a concerto for four solo instruments (oboe, viola da gamba, violin and bassoon), creating a texture similar to that of the six Brandenburgs. The arrangement is by Tim Willis.

The result is very satisfactory, allowing us to clearly tell apart the 4 lines that were originally assigned to the two harpsichords.

Four wind players

Movements

[Without tempo indication]
Adagio ovvero largo
Vivace

Xenia Löffler, oboe
Vittorio Ghielmi, viola da gamba
Helena Zemanová, violin
Györgyi Farkas, fagot
Collegium 1704
Václav Luks