Eric Miller (viola da gamba) and Max Yount (harpsichord) present J.S. Bach - The sonatas for Viola da gamba and Harpsichord, BWV 1027-1029, on Sunday, November 5, 2017 at 3:00pm. Tickets $10 in advance online at http://milleryount.bpt.me or $15 at the door. (Advance sales end 1 hour before the show. Tickets available at the door starting at 2:30pm.)
J.S. Bach's three sonatas for Viola da Gamba and Harpsichord, likely composed in the late 1730's or early 1740's, are cornerstones of the baroque viol repertoire. These masterpieces not only look back to the great tradition of viol playing which came before, but propel the instrument to its late flourishing in the pre-classical era associated with composers such as Carl F. Abel and J.S. Bach's own son, Carl Phillip Emanuel who wrote three virtuosic sonatas of his own for the instrument. The movements in these wildly diverse sonatas by J.S. Bach range from conversational to spooky, peaceful to bombastic, and finally take a majestic turn in the last and perhaps greatest of the set, the sonata in G Minor, BWV 1029. Having performed all three of these works over the years on various concerts, this is the first time gambist Eric Miller and harpsichordist Max Yount together will have performed the complete set in one program.