Solo Sonatas and Partitas Urtext

J.S. Bach Solo Sonatas and Partitas Peters edition Urtext

Perhaps seeded as early as 1703, the Solo Sonatas and partitas for Violin were ultimately fruits of Bach's time employed as Kapellmeister at the court in Köthen where his employer Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Köthen, a Calvinist with little requirement for liturgical music and also a keen musician, encouraged Bach to write much instrumental music for public and private entertainment.

Nothing written before approached the complexity, expressive range and scale of this music, from the volleys of chords and rhythmic intricacy of the B minor Partita's opening Allemanda and the endlessly inventive elaboration of the same work's variant 'doubles' to the vastness of the D minor Partita's concluding Ciaccona. This was possibly the longest stand-alone movement written until that point, and contains worlds of contrast in its 64 variants of the opening bars.

Reportedly a fine violinist himself, Bach completely redefined virtuosic and expressive violinistic possibility in these works.

This Peters Urtext edition by Max Rostal is a cornerstone of any violinist's library.

Also:

J.S. Bach 3 Sonatas and 3 Partitas for Violin Solo Facsimile

J.S. Bach Solo Sonatas and Partitas Peters edition Urtext

J.S. Bach Sonatas and Partitas for the Violin Schirmer edition

J.S. Bach Sonatas and Partitas for Violin solo BWV 1001-1006 notated and annotated Henle Urtext

J.S. Bach Sonatas and Partitas for Violin solo BWV 1001-1006 notated and annotated Henle Urtext Study score

J.S. Bach Six Sonatas and Partitas BWV 1001-1006 IMC ed. Ivan Galamian inc. facsimile

J.S. Bach Sonatas and Partitas ed. with fingering by Henryk Szeryng Schott edition

The Cambridge Companion to Bach

Bach's Works for Solo Violin: Style, Structure, Performance

Alternatively for viola:

J.S. Bach Sonatas and Partitas BWV 1001-1006 trans Viola Simon Rowland-Jones Peters edition

J.S. Bach 3 Sonatas and 3 Partitas BWV 1001-1006 (arr. Chung Park for Viola Solo) Barenreiter Urtext

Partita for solo violin No. 1 in B minor, BWV1002
Partita for solo violin No. 2 in D minor, BWV1004
Partita for solo violin No. 3 in E major, BWV1006
Sonata for solo violin No. 1 in G minor, BWV1001
Sonata for solo violin No. 2 in A minor, BWV1003
Sonata for solo violin No. 3 in C major, BWV1005