TRADUCTION FRANCAISE A VENIR...

by Marianne Dumas

The "Bach" word...

When it gets to Bach we often face 2 emotions: joy and freight...

The Bach cello Suites are like the Himalaya mountains for us, but with growing mounts! When you think you are about to reach the top of the mountain, another mount appears...

Playing the Suites is a lifelong journey, a beautiful one.

At what level do you want to play the Suites?

No matter the level, we always feel small in front of this masterpiece... but it doesn't mean you cannot start with the first step, and it is usually the First Suite.

Be aware of your technical level and of what you think you can achieve in order to make the best of this experience.

INTERPRETATION

TEMPO & PHRASING

Choosing a tempo for the prelude does not mean choosing "the" tempo of the prelude. There is no absolute answer in music and in the art in general. Same thing for the movements of the dances.

Choose the tempo where you think the piece will sound at its best.

Suggestions on how to find your tempo

SING

Free yourself of any technical problem. Singing the piece over and over is a good way to define phrasing ideas and tempo.

Think of the dance. Once you found a tempo, start thinking about phrasing. Keep in mind that besides the prelude, it is a Suite of dances. No matter if people were dancing on the Suites or not, the spirit of the dance should be there. What makes people dance together are the rhythm and the regularity of the strong beats. You can phrase and make move but don’t lose the rhythmic structure

Sing and feel the beat in your feet!

Once you have a clear vision of the phrasing and tempo, you might want to consider 2 more points.

The set up of your instrument / the acoustics of the room. The set up of your cello and the room where you play have an influence on the choice of tempo. The speed of projection of the sound, the type of room and reverb, let your ears be your guide.Your technical levelThe best tempo is often the one where you can play at your best... where you give your best to the piece.

FLUIDITY AND ARTICULATION

Playing a piece is like telling a story where the sound of the cello is your voice. Imagine you tell a story through the harmony.
Fluidity in your playing is what you want to aim for. You want your audience to be captivated from the beginning until the end. If you stop too many times or go into too many details, you might lose the attention of the listener(s). Knowing what is important in the structure

When repeating something, know if you repeat as an echo, if you want to insist on what was played, or just repeat it with the same tone.

Experience repeating a short sentence and the impact it has in the meaning

For example:THIS IS BEAUTIFUL - this is beautiful
this is beautiful - THIS IS BEAUTIFUL
THIS IS BEAUTIFUL - THIS IS BEAUTIFUL
this is beautiful - this is beautiful
this is BEAUTIFUL - this is BEAUTIFUL
etc.

then, try the same experience singing the notes. For example, sing the begining of the first Prelude.

BOWINGS AND FINGERINGS

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bowings

BOWINGS AND FINGERINGS

Ideally your bowings and fingerings should not influence your phrasing but the opposite.

Avoid technical rubato as much as possible.

Technical rubato is when you put an accent or change the tempo of the phrase because of a technical issue, not because of a musical idea.

If your technical level is not high enough, simplify the bow strokes, playing urtext can be what you aim for, but only when your technical level allows you to really get deeper into historical performance.

The sound and the resonance must be your guide.

How do find out if your phrasing is influenced by your technique?

-> Compare the phrasing you do when you play to the one you do when you sing.

Be curious, experiment, question, doubt... there is not only one rule...

DOWN OR UP?

Listen to the vibration of your cello...

"Some move the bow as is customary on the viola da gamba, that is, instead of a down-stroke from left to right for the principal notes,
they make an up-stroke from right to left, beginning from the tip of the bow."

J. J. Quantz about cellists, Berlin, 1752

The Suites are (for most of us) our Alma mater We have a personal story, and an individual approach to the text.

Don't be too hard on yourself and on others... there is no absolute truth in art ;)

Having a clear opinion is important, it will define your interpretation, but finding your truth doesn't mean it is absolute.

For example, it is not because I deeply believe the cello sounds better by reversing the bowing technique that I think it is the absolute truth, nor that people who don't reverse are wrong.

Stay open to discussion as well as different opinions.

> being opinionated vs being judgmental.

It can be a scary topic for a cellist since everything can be argued but discussions on the topic are very important because we can all learn from each other.

It is important to respect freedom of speech, thinking, and interpretation

LE MOT DE LA FIN

Le mot de la fin

My personal experience...

I used to say "I will never play baroque cello" and "I will never record the Bach Cello Suites"... all in one, done ;) !

My aim with this project is to share what I learn(t) during my exploration of the Suites. I search, think, rethink, explore, try, experiment, etc. When I started this project, it was just a personal exploration of the Suites, a few years later I keep working on the topic, and my recording of the Suites has been released in May.

What I learned :

That we don't know, that everything is interpretation... the more we learn, the more we wonder.... and we keep trying to find possible answers.

One of the answers I found...

There is no place for the ego in the Suites.

Curious about my Journey -> clic here

If we compare the Suites to a journey,

the most important part is the ride,

no matter when or where we will get to the destination.

We learn, we grow, we share...