About this edition
Bach's Harpsichord Concerto No. 6 in F major, BWV 1057 holds a unique place in the concerto repertoire as the composer's own reworking of the Brandenburg Concerto No. 4, BWV 1049. In transforming the original violin concertino into a keyboard-led ensemble, Bach preserved the two recorders (here designated as flutes) and reimagined the brilliant string solo part for harpsichord — producing a work that is at once familiar and startlingly fresh, with the keyboard weaving through the sparkling recorder writing and the sinewy contrapuntal string textures. The exuberant outer movements and the plaintive Andante in D minor make this one of the most rewarding of Bach's seven concertos for a single harpsichord.
This score reproduces the text from the monumental Bach-Gesellschaft Ausgabe, the first complete critical edition of Bach's works, issued by Breitkopf und Härtel of Leipzig between 1851 and 1900. BWV 1057 appears in Band 17 (1869), edited by Wilhelm Rust (1822–1892), one of the most meticulous and musically insightful of the Bach-Gesellschaft editors. Rust's volumes are still consulted today for their careful engagement with autograph sources and their clean, readable engraving, and the Bach-Gesellschaft edition remains a cornerstone of Bach scholarship — the foundation upon which nearly all subsequent editions have been built.
About this edition:
- Full orchestral score (solo harpsichord, two flutes, strings, continuo)
- Page size: 8.5 x 11 inches
- Reproduced from the Bach-Gesellschaft Ausgabe, Band 17 (Leipzig: Breitkopf und Härtel, 1869), plate B.W. XVII
- Edited by Wilhelm Rust
- Reproduced from a public domain historical source
- Published by Purple 4R Publishing
This edition faithfully reproduces a public domain historical score, bringing an authoritative nineteenth-century engraving of one of Bach's most delightful concertos into the hands of today's conductors, performers, and students. We're glad to help keep these enduring works alive on music stands and library shelves.
