Mar 10, 2015 this is said to be the last recording by british cellist david watkin, who is moving to conducting due to a muscle problem. David watkin baroque cello renowned cellist and interpreter of baroque music david watkin records the cello suites by j. Siblin has written about the cello suites from a wideeyed newbies point of view. Regular readers will know i am a great fan of watkin s playing as the orchestras principal cellist. The first enthusiasm of my musical life was the making of clavichords and harpsichords, so it was natural that i became obsessed by early music. If i stay by gayle forman, the cello suites by eric siblin, where she went by gayle forman, the garden of letters by alyson richm. Jul 19, 2015 using two historic instruments and playing on gut strings, david watkin gives a definitive period instrument account of bachs six solo cello suites. From 1990 to 1997, he was principal cellist of the bbc symphony orchestra watkins joined the emerson string quartet in the 2014. Catherines college, cambridge, as a choral scholar. Aug 03, 2017 back in april 2017, we teamed up with kings place, london to film unlocking the bach cello suites with david watkin as part of their cello unwrapped series. Bachs cello suites on two instruments of historical note including the only.
The suites have been transcribed for numerous instruments, including the violin, viola, double bass, viola da gamba, mandolin, piano, marimba, classical guitar, recorder, electric bass, horn, saxophone, bass clarinet, bassoon, trumpet, trombone, euphonium, tuba, ukulele, and. Cellist david watkin announced as scottish conservatoire head. In honor of professor david watkins 80th birthday, we present an intimate portrait of this iconic harpist, teacher, composer and arranger. The fact that bach also wrote a version of the fifth cello suite for lute has fascinated me for a very long time. Cello david watkin has made a wide range of recordings including the vivaldi cello sonatas with the kings consort hyperion and haydns sinfonia concertante with orchestra of the age of enlightenment virgin. It should deeply satisfy the players british fan base and go beyond that, for its a fine recording of the muchplayed bach suites for solo cello. Although i had been familiar with these works through the recordings of several great cellists over many years, this one seemed to reveal a deeper emotional level of awareness for me in addition to a beautiful sound and an acute sense of form and structure. Watkins studied cello with william pleeth, melissa phelps and johannes goritzki. They have been featured in concerts and commercials alike, transcribed for a diverse array of instruments, and interpreted. For sheer verve, variety and spontaneity, watkins period instrument recording is a must. From 1990 to 1997, he was principal cellist of the bbc symphony orchestra. Eric silbins the cello suites tenderly tracks them through bachs creation, their.
Bach, pablo casals, and the search for a baroque masterpiece, by eric siblin new york. A wonderful and moving rendition that everyone should discover. Davids recording of bachs cello suites won both a gramophone award and a bbc music magazine award. It tells the life stories of bach and casals in relation to the cello suites, along with the story of the authors discovery of the suites and subsequent research into them. Yoyo ma plays the entire six unaccompanied suites by johann sebastian bach at the bbc proms at the royal albert hall on the 5th of september, 2015. The cello suites are found together with a copy of the sonatas and partitas for solo violin. His first recording as a conductor, of the berg and britten violin concertos with. We were treated to david watkin giving us bachs second cello suite in d minor bwv 1008 an extremely pleasant surprise, given it wasnt listed in the season brochure. Oct, 2016 the bach revival had begun, but the cello suites still languished without recognition. Bach most likely composed them during the period 171723, when he served as kapellmeister in kothen. David watkin is one of the leading cellists in the period performance movement in london. Its not a bad book by any means and im glad i read it. The six cello suites, bwv 10071012, are suites for unaccompanied cello by johann sebastian bach.
Cellist david watkin announced as scottish conservatoire. David watkin, one of our most inspired continuo players, is a consummate virtuoso. He makes life difficult for his readers by copying the. The idea was vague, but i had a strong sense there was a story there, somewhere, and decided to follow in the footsteps of the notes. This is the first article in the american harp journal about prof. Bach s cello suites are renowned as the pinnacle of the instrument s repertoire, and are performed here in period performances by internationally acclaimed cellist david watkin. The idea to write a book about the bach suites, one that is not aimed at classical connoisseurs, came to me when i first heard three of the cello suites in that. John friesen performs these works on a very attractivesounding instrument, which has a deep, rich bass, and wonderful resonance. With pianist howard moody he has recorded beethoven cello sonatas chandos and francis potts 1996 sonata guild. A timeless recording november 21, 2011 by donald p. Bach cello suites book 1, m570244157, 3611866, kevin. Siblins book is partly an attempt to flesh out these portraits. David watkin cello artist hyperion records cds, mp3.
Mstislav rostropovich recorded his decca accounts of brittens op. As a boy he had thorough training in the cello, including private lessons with sharon mckinley and school lessons with margaret moncrieff and amaryllis fleming. David watkins recording of bachs cello suites has been named one of the top classical music recordings of 2015 by music critic and writer kate molleson. Benjamin brittens suites for solo cello have been extensively documented. This is purely intended to help those that are looking for example videos of. David watkins recording of the bach cello suites won both gramohpone and bbc music awards. Watkins and is the culmination of numerous visits by john browne to prof. Back in april 2017, we teamed up with kings place, london to film unlocking the bach cello suites with david watkin as part of their cello. The royal conservatoire of scotland has today announced cellist and conductor david watkin as their new head of strings a student of william pleeth, he served as principal cellist with the philharmonia orchestra, scottish chamber orchestra, english baroque. It was one of three recordings included alongside casals in gramophones list of the 50 greatest bach recordings. It is a task so daunting that the famous russian cellist mstislav rostropovich only felt himself worthy of the feat at the age of 68 in his much anticipated 1995 recording, legendary even before its release.
Sep 07, 2015 yoyo ma plays the entire six unaccompanied suites by johann sebastian bach at the bbc proms at the royal albert hall on the 5th of september, 2015. The cello suites in particular are claimed by an assortment of other instruments, from viola to trombone and clarinet, in addition to the orchestral arrangements. The unusual historical instruments will get attention. In 1988, he won the bbc young musician of the year in the string section. Yo yo ma bach six cello suites bbc proms 2015 youtube. David watkins profound musicianship, though, is more than enough to accelerate this recording of bachs cello suites to the top of the tiny league of definitive recordings, beyond the infinitesimal care of ditta rohmann hungaroton, 514, 1114, the meticulous intellectualism of anner bylsma sony, 781, 193 or even the refined. That is how david watkin s 2015 recording of the bach cello suites affected me. Six cello suites, bwv 10071012 transcribed for viola by simon rowlandjones peters dotzauergrant fundamentals of cello technique, volume 1 cello solo ludwig music publishing krane, charles new school of cello studies, book 2 cello solo spratt music publishers cello concerto, op. David watkins cello suites named one of 2015s top classical.
David watkins recording of bachs cello suites is out on resonus classics on march 2. This is said to be the last recording by british cellist david watkin, who is moving to conducting due to a muscle problem. Cello suites david watkin resonus classics res10147. Regular readers will know i am a great fan of watkin s playing as the orchestras principal cellist, and as a soloist he acquitted himself no less well. Bach, rightly considered as the pinnacle of writing for solo cello. Back in april 2017, we teamed up with kings place, london to film unlocking the bach cello suites with david watkin as part of their cello unwrapped series. The idea to write a book about the bach suites, one that is not aimed at classical connoisseurs, came to me when i first heard three of the cello suites in that toronto recital by laurence lesser. Oct 11, 2014 we were treated to david watkin giving us bachs second cello suite in d minor bwv 1008 an extremely pleasant surprise, given it wasnt listed in the season brochure. They are some of the most frequently performed and recognizable. The english cellist, david watkin, read music at st catharines. Eric siblins bach infatuation in the cello suites the. They are some of the most frequently performed and recognizable solo compositions ever written for cello. Recorded by any cellist worth his salt, these works contain some of the most poignant and emotional music bach ever wrote.
I would guess biographies of famous cellists would fit the bill, and be a good place to start. Almost every great cellist of the twentieth century has recorded johann sebastian bachs six suites for solo cello. Of the six suites, four are in a major key and two in a minor key, increasing in technical complexity and emotional richness from the first to the last. The royal conservatoire of scotland has today announced cellist and conductor david watkin as their new head of strings a student of william pleeth, he served as principal cellist with the philharmonia orchestra, scottish chamber orchestra, english baroque soloists and the lorchestre revolutionnaire et romantique and was a founding member of the eroica quartet. It was another fifty years before the inquisitive eyes of a thirteenyearold cellist by the name of pablo casals found a battered copy of the suites, thought of then as a collection of humdrum studies for the aspiring cellist, in a secondhand music store in barcelona. Bach s cello suites are renowned as the pinnacle of the instrument s repertoire, and are performed here in period performances by internationally acclaimed cellist david. Using two historic instruments and playing on gut strings, david watkin gives a definitive period instrument account of bachs six solo cello suites. Writing in the herald, kate describes the recording as. Bach cello suites are some of the most frequently performed and recognizable solo compositions ever written for cello. Paul watkins is an exclusive recording artist with chandos records and his recent releases include brittens cello symphony, the delius, elgar, lutoslawski and walton cello concertos, and discs of british and american music for cello and piano with huw watkins.
He is the artistic director of the great lakes chamber music festival in detroit since 2014, the cellist of the emerson string quartet since 20 and. The cello suites david lander dec 20, 2010 the cello suites. Paul watkins born 1970 is a welsh classical cellist and conductor. The six bach cello suites theanna magdalena manuscripts, the lute version autograph of suite no. The bach cello suites are some of the most recognizable and wellloved pieces of music in both classical and popular circles. There have been fine recent recordings of bachs suites on baroque cello, including richard tunnicliffes characterful accounts linn, but this, to me, feels like the set ive spent years waiting for. David has revived the 18thcentury practice of realising figured bass on the cello. The diversity and scope among various recordings of these works seems remarkable, given that the oldest of them was written only in 1964. Bachs cello suites are arguably the greatest works ever written for solo cello. They have performed in major venues throughout europe and the usa.
Bachs suites for unaccompanied cello have long been among my favorite pieces of music. The solo cello suites are perhaps the cellists equivalent of climbing. He is a member of the eroica quartet which has astonished critics around the world with its radical performances of the music of the early romantics. There is grit and solemnity, pain and resolve, but no trace of the anger that his illness must have caused during the recording.
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