Mischa Maisky is one of the most acclaimed cello virtuosos of our time. During a recital in the Main Hall of the National Forum of Music, this legendary artist will present his interpretations of Johann Sebastian Bach’s canonical cello suites. These are not only works constituting the core cello repertoire, but also compositions that have fascinated generations of music lovers.

The six cello suites by Johann Sebastian Bach were probably written during the composer’s stay in Köthen, i.e. between 1717 and 1723. Today they are among the most important works by the Leipzig cantor and the most important compositions for solo cello. There are also countless settings of the suites for other instruments. However, for many years these pieces were practically not performed. They were deemed just learning exercises and unattractive to a wide audience. The situation changed radically in the late 1930s, when the suites were recorded by the Spanish cellist Pablo Casals. The artist quickly restored their rightful place in the repertoire, and music lovers now choose from numerous recordings of the entire collection, including the version played by Mischa Maisky.

The Baroque suite is a collection of dances, so it is no wonder that each of those by Bach is structured quite similarly. The first movement is always a Prelude, the second is a calm Allemande in an even metre, after which the soloist performs a lively French dance in triple metre – Courante. Fourth place belongs to the slow Spanish Sarabande. The fifth movement is Minuet, Bourrée or Gavotte. Each of the suites ends with a fast English dance – Gigue. Despite the seemingly schematic structure, the richness of invention contained in these works and the depth of emotions enchanted in them still move us today.

During the Wrocław recital, Mischa Maisky will perform Suite No. 1 in G major, Suite No. 4 in E flat major and Suite No. 5 in C minor. The opening prelude of the first of these works is the most famous movement of all Bach’s cello suites and has also been re-arranged innumerable times for other line-ups. Suite No. 4 in E flat major, although it is not inferior to the others in terms of sound beauty, is rather difficult for the performer due to the key it was notated in. The most famous movement of Suite No. 5 in C minor is the melancholic Sarabande, considered by many cellists to be the best and most profound work by Bach for this instrument.