-Brahms
As a composer of the Baroque style, Johann Sebastian Bach traversed every challenge of the period via his (now) wildly successful masterpieces. Namely, his exquisite design of the Suite. Not unlike the Suite (in fact, definitively interchangeable), the Partita was a particularly high skill of Bach's (Oxford Companion to Music). Written almost entirely in a cheerful tone, his Partita No. 2 in D minor ends with something of a interpretational mystery. The fifth and final movement, Bach's infamous Chaconne is the Everest of performance pyrotechnics and phrase realization.
Originally banned from European churches, a Chaccone's suggestive beat patterns and "lusty" dance characteristics slowed its initiation into Western literature (www.radioopensource.org). A Chaconne's dance roots come from Central and South America and eventually moved their way to Spain. The Sarabande shared a similar fate, both were banned from the church repertoire, and until composition shifted into more private settings, these dances were hard to find. Vital to performance, musicians must feel the triple meter court dance with a strong emphasis on the second beat. First violinist of the Guarneri Quartet, Arnold Steinhardt (in an interview on Open Source Radio with Christopher Lydon), says he didn't understand fully the importance of the Chaconne's meter until an old teacher of his, Arthur Lesser danced the entire Partita for him in his living room (www.radioopensource.org).
Compositionally, a Chaconne is a type of theme and variations where a four-bar (and sometimes coupled with another four-bar) phrase is relentlessly repeated and varied (www.solomonsmusic.net). Similar to a passacaglia (based on a bass ostinato in triple meter), the harmonic progression is persistent throughout the piece. Bach manages to write the same four-bar phrase 64 times, without creating "a colossal bore" (Arthur Steinhardt)-- only flawless transitions and perfectly arranged variations. It is then up to the performer to interpret the stream of Bach's writing and realize the notes, the measures, and the phrases of Bach's idea.
Virtuoso Jascha Heifitz's (1901-1987) violin technique is regarded (by most) as immaculate. To the pleasure of the listener, his tone has a driving aspect that, when coupled with his steady performance demeanor, cuts directly to the center of every note. For Bach, this kind of sound is essential. Bach himself was a master violinist and his own son said of Bach's playing, "my father played with a clean and penetrating sound". A seemingly perfect style with which to interpret this Chaconne, however, it lacks something. Heifitz's interpretation just borders the line of too cool. Some of the mystery of this Chaconne is in its compositional history, believed by most to have been written as a lament for Bach's late wife, Maria Barbara Bach. It can be heard at the bottom of each chord. Not necessarily because of the time spent on those notes, but the pull of the bow and its contact with the string. This is Baroque, and just like his contemporaries, Bach set his target on some aspect o human affection. Along with whatever personal motivation that fueled this composition, Bach's special version of Baroque is clear if the performer really invests their interpretation with the same intention. Listen carefully at the 3:00 mark of the posted Heifitz recording. This section of the Chaconne can be incredibly revealing. Perhaps he was going for some effect and simply missed the target, but that in itself is a flaw. In this section, he moves too quickly. The double stops feel stopped, and this disrupts the stream of the theme and its sounds cold. Likewise, following that variation, his staccato up-bows sound too mechanical for the characteristic of the piece. Immediately after, he looses another aspect of the Baroque effect to his hurried style. The trill-- essential to Baroque interpretation-- Heifitz just lets them pass by with minimal consideration. That kind of relationship to such a defining element is inconsiderate.
Compare now, the same spot on Hilary Hahn's recording. At 3:50, Hahn taks the phrase and melts each chord into itself with such a clear idea of the intent behind the phrase, the result is far more "clean and penetrating" than immaculate technique. Which, arguably, she may also have. Hahn's American prodigy story is well known. She grew up in Virginia and was admitted to the Curtis Institute of Music (one of the most prestigious conservatories in the world) at age ten. Where her interpretations of Bach are rooted, I'm unsure, but as her recording tells, she understands the intimate emotion of Bach's writing.Setting up the movement with a string of tonally centered chords, she moves through the piece with a perfect balance of phraseology and affect provoking sound. Back to the 3:50 mark, just following this variation, as opposed to Heifitz's strange staccatos, she hits and releases each note so that this section's effect of speed is clear, yet the kind of thick rounded accent given doesn't change the character so drastically. I must mention, it is a little heavy on the romantic side at this point, but perhaps this is the brand of romance that coexisted with Baroque. Most compelling is her treatment of the trills at 4:40, where they get the time and speed they deserve. As well as the soft section at 5:10, where she styles each arpegiated chord with the necessary shape and volume so as to play this "autobiographical meditation" directly from Bach's hand (www.radioopensource.org).
For further study, take a look at Arnold Steinhardt's book, "Violin Dreams", featuring the Chaconne. Also, there are many arrangements of the movement; for piano, guitar, organ and orchestra (no free recordings of organ or orchestra). These of course are only supplements, as Bach wrote the Partita for violin. For a live performance, perhaps ask Steinhardt locals Josh Henderson or Molly Fletcher-- they'd probably perform for food.
