How we transcribed Bach’s Goldberg Variations for flute, violin, viola da gamba and basso continuo

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There were several major challenges in our attempts to transcribe J.S. Bach’s Goldberg Variations for the formation of flute, violin, viola da gamba and basso continuo. But before we get onto that, we must say that first and foremost it was an immense joy to immerse ourselves in transcribing the Goldbergs. What a pleasure to create an arrangement featuring instruments so dear to Bach’s heart, instruments that we find at the heart of his works throughout his life.

In tackling the transcriptions, some of the variations required little effort, so obvious was the writing proposal. At times, we were tempted to believe that they were originally written for our group’s set-up! This was the case, for example, when a variation was in the form of a canon (with a not-too-high interval) and where the two trebles shared the voices….the viola da gamba and keyboard simply performing a basso continuo.

Generally speaking, we followed what seemed to us to be the most organic way throughout the transcription. And then we also made decisions based on what was concretely possible with our instruments. In the treble clef, below the staff, the flute does not go below D, the violin is limited to low G and the viola is not stuck in a range that is too high… With these elements, you already have enough to orient yourself quite easily for each variation (moreover, the viola da gamba took on a major role in this project insofar as it is an instrument that has a wide range, which makes the final score a small technical challenge for it; unlike the other instruments, its presence is therefore constant).

Secondly, we felt it was quite important for each member of the group to find his or her place. By assigning the Aria to the flute, it was fairly obvious to associate the first variation with the violin. We made decisions, instinctively, and gradually built our way up to be as convincing and interesting as possible. Sometimes, we changed our minds… for example the bass added in Variation 8 took time and hindsight… It was a long journey.

For each variation, we also chose to refer to a form of European chamber music from the 17th and 18th centuries: the French trio sonata, the German sonata for violin and viola da gamba, the quartet, etc. These references became our justification. They’re very important, because they enabled us to get as close as possible to what the composer himself might have done had we asked him to transcribe his Goldberg Variations for us. Almost every variation echoes an existing form from Bach’s time, which brought us considerably closer to the composer and to what he himself would have imagined. It’s also what enabled us to conceive something that was very varied, featuring many different timbres.

The four variations of our transcription in trio formation, without keyboard, completely escape this process. This instrumental set-up, which exists neither in Bach’s work, nor in the Baroque period itself, was adopted when the changes in tessitura between instruments were too great for a serene-sounding basso continuo without damaging the counterpoint (paradoxically, this somewhat anachronistic formation was actually used to preserve the counterpoint of these variations!)The trios allowed the work to breathe quite a bit, allowing pauses between the denser variations, but also confronted us with something very new for us. It was the first time we had recorded pieces without a keyboard! With the rather disparate timbres of the flute, violin and viola da gamba, we had to find a homogeneous sound, a fluidity in the exchange of voices, a colour that we had not yet explored to this extent, and this was certainly one of the challenges of this transcription.

Our transcription also includes two duos for violin and viola da gamba. The similar timbres of the two instruments bring a kind of obviousness to the dialogue, making it all the more enjoyable. There’s a certain intimacy in this instrumentation, and these variations contain a slightly melancholic, sometimes contemplative feeling, set back from the action. They act as counterpoints to the more dramatic or spectacular variations. It’s not always easy to reconcile these two instruments. Although they share a common rubbed-string technique, they are fundamentally different in concept. We often forget that the viola da gamba is probably more closely related to the lute than to the violin. As a result, the violin has an ability to make a line shine and radiate - something that is sometimes beyond the viol’s capabilities, whereas the viol brings greater resonance and extra harmonic interest. In the end, the two instruments, while having quite different modes of emission, are very complementary and learn from each other!

We also decided to use the keyboards only as a continuo part, and not as an essential element, in order to distance ourselves from a work that was originally written for the keyboard. Creating a basso continuo in the Goldberg Variations is another major challenge of this transcription.

The work is so rich that it is often difficult to add voices or counterpoint to accompany the trebles. For this reason, we have proposed a basso continuo for the entire published score that will be released a little after the album. This basso continuo illustrates our more audacious decisions, which are obviously subjective. Would the composer have agreed with our choices? No one will ever know…

Nevermind:

Anna Besson (flute)

Louis Creac’h (violin)

Robin Pharo (viola da gamba)

Jean Rondeau (harpsichord and organ)

Nevermind’s Goldberg Variations is out now on Alpha Classics.