Bach & Dresden

Johann Sebastian Bach throughout his career maintained a significant relationship with Dresden and the musicians of the court. During his first visit in 1717, he performed for the court and all the members of its orchestra, likely affording him the opportunity to make the acquaintance of such important musicians as the flautists Pierre-Gabriel Buffardin and Johann Joachim Quantz, the oboist Johann Christian Richter, the lutenist Silvius Leopold Weiss, the violone player Jan
Dismas Zelenka and the violinists Francesco Maria Veracini and Johann Georg Pisendel. Since then he often frequented the city to perform and test organs as well as visit his colleagues from the Dresden Hokkapelle. After the death of Augustus the Strong (1 February 1733), Bach started to compose a Mass in b minor, which he send the Kyrye and Gloria with a dedication to the latter’s son and successor Frederik August II, in a letter dated 27 July 1733 in the hope of obtaining the title of “Saxon Electoral Court Composer”. Sadly the work was never performed then, but as for the result of his petition to the new ruler in Dresden, the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, some three years after his request Bach received the title of Royal Court Composer. In the same year in December 1736, Bach gave a two hour organ concert on the newly built Gottfried Silbermann organ in the Frauenkirche.
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Our programme tonight focus in the relationship of the works written for violin and basso continuo by Bach and the concertmasters/violinists of the Dresden orchestra: Francesco Maria Veracini, Johann Paul Westhoff and Johann Georg Pisendel.

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