Isabel Faust, violinist.
- Bach: Sonatas and Partitas Vol.2
Isabelle Faust offers us her personal vision of these solo violin masterpieces by J. S. Bach. In Bach’s time, music for solo instruments was rarely performed, and his Sonatas and Partitas immediately established themselves as an opportunity for artistic creativity.
On this second and final volume of the set, Isabelle Faust plays a Stradivarius crafted in 1704.
Faust’s remarkable skill and musicianship produce a terrific interpretation. She plays with minimal vibrato, very intelligent ornamentations, and a directness that is very striking. The closing Presto of the First Sonata, for example, is taken at a thrilling speed with Faust’s magnificent technique allowing her to remain utterly fluent and completely clear, and other movements show similarly exceptional skill and imagination.
Whether you will enjoy this recording will depend upon your response to Faust’s interpretation, which may not suit everyone. I have always enjoyed the interpretation by Nathan Milstein, which is vastly different, and certainly a more “classical” presentation. Yet… I have come to really respect what Ms. Faust does with these masterpieces, and I’ll try to illustrate this with some video examples:
Here is Johann Sebastian Bach’s (1685 – 1750) Sonata № 1 BWV 1001 in G minor for solo violin, as performed by Isabelle Faust.
And next, I have for you the J. S. Bach Sonata 1 BWV 1001 – II Fuga, Allegro, again performed by Ms. Faust:
Finally, here is the Bach ‘Sarabande’ from Partita No. 2, as played by Isabelle Faust:
Tags: Isabelle Faust, J. S. Bach, solo sonatas, Partitas