BWV Fragments (1999)
for solo piano
Publisher: Bardic Edition
Published in: Collected Shorter Piano Pieces Vol 1 (2008) – Bardic Edition BDE 917
Available from Goodmusic Publishing
Duration: 1 minute
Recordings
Recorded by Jill Richards on ‘Michael Blake: Complete Works for Solo Piano 1994-2004’ (MBED001); and by Antony Gray on ‘Bach Piano Transcriptions’ (ABC Records PLU 347534)
Première
First performance: Thursday 16 May 2002; Beethoven Room, Grahamstown, South Africa; Jill Richards piano.
Further performances: 14 May 2013; Endler Hall, Stellenbosch University, South Africa; Michael Blake 24 July 2013; Gentsche Festspiele, Belgium; Michael Blake (European premiere) 9 March 2018; Woordfees, Stellenbosch, South Africa; Michael Blake 9 April 2019; Fismer Hall, Stellenbosch University, South Africa; Michael Blake 3 September 2019; Beethoven Room, Rhodes University, South Africa; Michael Blake
Programme note
BWV Fragments was written on the occasion of Ishbel Sholto-Douglas’ retirement from the Rhodes University Music Department. Her life-long passion for Bach’s Cello Suites, which she first introduced me to when I was an undergraduate at Wits University close to three decades before, led me to use them as the source material for this little tribute. I cut and pasted, transposed and superimposed fragments, and deliberately misread clefs, but every single note came from Bach.
for solo piano
Publisher: Bardic Edition
Published in: Collected Shorter Piano Pieces Vol 1 (2008) – Bardic Edition BDE 917
Available from Goodmusic Publishing
Duration: 1 minute
Recordings
Recorded by Jill Richards on ‘Michael Blake: Complete Works for Solo Piano 1994-2004’ (MBED001); and by Antony Gray on ‘Bach Piano Transcriptions’ (ABC Records PLU 347534)
Première
First performance: Thursday 16 May 2002; Beethoven Room, Grahamstown, South Africa; Jill Richards piano.
Further performances: 14 May 2013; Endler Hall, Stellenbosch University, South Africa; Michael Blake 24 July 2013; Gentsche Festspiele, Belgium; Michael Blake (European premiere) 9 March 2018; Woordfees, Stellenbosch, South Africa; Michael Blake 9 April 2019; Fismer Hall, Stellenbosch University, South Africa; Michael Blake 3 September 2019; Beethoven Room, Rhodes University, South Africa; Michael Blake
Programme note
BWV Fragments was written on the occasion of Ishbel Sholto-Douglas’ retirement from the Rhodes University Music Department. Her life-long passion for Bach’s Cello Suites, which she first introduced me to when I was an undergraduate at Wits University close to three decades before, led me to use them as the source material for this little tribute. I cut and pasted, transposed and superimposed fragments, and deliberately misread clefs, but every single note came from Bach.
