C. P. E. Bach Cello Concertos

The royal courts of mid-eighteenth century Berlin were lively crossroads for some of the greatest musicians of the time. The cello concertos of C. P. E. Bach were composed in the early 1750s, likely to be performed at one of the private academies or music societies popular in Berlin at the time. These tempestuous and dramatic concertos, full of fragmented and blustery exchanges, bear witness to Bach's vigorous imagination. A generation earlier, Antonio Vivaldi wrote highly-imaginative concertos for strings at the Le Pietà conservatory in Venice. These surprising works are full of in-jokes and amusements to entertain his talented young students. In Vivaldi and Bach's music, emotions are fleeting and instantaneous and, above all, the beauty of melody is emphasized.