Bach's Double Violin Concerto in D minor is a beautiful and important composition, surpassing the standard of Baroque at that time. While minor keys often imply melancholic tunes, Bach's concerto is majestic, serious, and humanistic.
Arrangement and Features of the Double Violin Concerto
The concerto's form is based on the fugue or canon, since Bach was a master organist. The first movement, a vivace, is essentially a Bachian fugue. The second violin starts off by immediately introducing the theme in the key of D minor.
After 4 bars, the first violin comes in, playing the same melody, but in the key of A minor. Both soloistsb begin to "chasing after each other," exchanging roles as lead melody; at other time both soloists accompany each other.
In the middle of the movement, the second violin introduces another "interlude" of several arpeggios. Surprisingly, the last note of the movement ends with a major chord, which may displease some listeners, but seems to fit well.
The second movement is a graceful largo ma non tanto, which was eventually hailed as the most lovable slow movement of Bach's entire concerto repertoire. This movement, in a major key, is a perfectly balanced duet.
The finale, an allegro, begins dramatically with downward notes, and is another fugue in minor. The dialogue between the two violins is simply fascinating, and reaches the height of musical ingenuity before slowing down to a simple, conventional ending.
Recommended Recordings of the Double Violin Concerto
For a fresh recording full of antique Baroque flavour, Andrew Manze and Rachel Podger on Harmonia Mundi's Bach: Solo and Double Concertos perform the piece superbly.
Jascha Heifetz and Erick Friedman's version is full of energy and played so briskly that the first movement justifies a label of vivace.
The perfect balance of romantic excess and baroque convention would be the characteristic of the Grumiaux-Krebbers duet on Philips Classics.
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