Cellist Pieter Wispelwey presents a special solo program centered on the cello suites by Johann Sebastian Bach and Benjamin Britten. With his six suites, Bach laid the foundation of the cello repertoire: music full of clarity, dance-like elegance, and deep expression. Two and a half centuries later, Britten drew direct inspiration from Bach and wrote his own suites for solo cello for the legendary Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich.

In Britten’s suites, echoes of Bach resonate, but in a contemporary, tension-filled language full of contrast, stillness, and surprising timbres. It is precisely the bringing together of several of these works that makes the program so special: past and present mirror each other, reinforce one another, and demonstrate just how timeless the cello can sound. Wispelwey acts as the guide in this musical encounter, which begins with Bach’s Cello Suite No. 1, also the most famous of the six he wrote.

Program

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Suite No. 1 for solo cello, BWV 1007

Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
Suite No. 1 for solo cello Op. 72

— pause —

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Suite No. 2 for solo cello, BWV 1008

Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
Suite No. 3 for solo cello Op. 87