Siciliano, BWV 1031

Siciliano, BWV 1031
From the Flute Sonata No. 2


Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750)

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period. Known as the father of classical music, Bach created more than 1,100 works, including roughly 300 sacred cantatas. His output is unparalleled and includes about every musical genre outside of opera. He is known for instrumental compositions such as the Brandenburg Concertos and the Goldberg Variations, and for vocal music such as the St Matthew Passion and the Mass in B minor. Since the 19th-century Bach Revival, he has been generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.

The Sonata in E♭ major for flute and harpsichord, probably by J. S. Bach (BWV 1031), is a sonata in 3 movements. The Siciliano is the second movement in G minor. The siciliana or siciliano (also known as sicilienne or ciciliano) is a musical style or genre often included as a movement within larger pieces of music starting in the Baroque period. It is in a slow 6/8 or 12/8 time with lilting rhythms, making it somewhat resemble a slow jig or tarantella, and is usually in a minor key. It was used for arias in Baroque operas, and often appears as a movement in instrumental works. My arrangement on guitar is influenced by Wilhelm Kempff (1895 - 1991)'s piano transcription, with the key in A minor.

 
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