Bach sixth suite for unaccompanied Cello in D Major. This suite was originally composed for the violin pomposa (a violin with 5 strings), but has since been incorporated as one of the cello suites. Bach composed these masterpieces between 1717 and 1723 whole living in the city of Cothen. Together with the six somanatas and partitas for violin solo, they, without question, constitute the most monumental documents of the polyphonic string music. Unmatched in their beauty and depth of feeling, they demonstrate Bach’s consummate understanding of these instrument’s capabilities, and his total mastery of all the musical forms of his day. Note that this sarabande is in drop D tuning and in 3/2 time, and should be counted 1 + 2 + 3 +.

Notes
Played in 3/2 Time Signature. Drop D tuning. Key in D Major. Played Largo/Lento or Slow. Suspend notes as much notes as possible to fill the silence. As in any typical Bach’s Sarabande, there are 2 parts. First part is always shorter in duration than part 2. Repeat both parts twice. Left hand song. Master the left hand finger position and the rest is easy.

Bar[10] There’s a hinged barred chord in this measure. From your current chord position, flatten index finger to barre chord position and sound note.

Excerpt from Johann Sebastian Bach's BWV1012 Sarabande

Further Reading
I learnt Bwv1012 Sarabande from this book: Bach for Guitar by Howard Wallach. 14 pieces from Easy to Intermediate introducing a brief song introduction and tab. This book comes with plenty of drawings and a full explanation of signs and symbols used in the book. 47 pages in paperback, Alfred Publishing.

BWV 645 – 650: Schübler Chorale Preludes.

Schübler Chorales is a name commonly used for a collection of six chorale preludes by Johann Sebastian Bach (BWV 645–650). They were engraved and published in the late 1740s by Johann Georg Schübler, from whom they derive their nickname. The collection is originally entitled Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme (”Wake, Awake for Night is Passing“). Uniquely for Bach’s sets of organ works, five out of six chorales in this collection are transcriptions from his cantatas. BWV 645 is transcribe from: Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 140, movement 4 (tenor chorale). The pieces are composed for a two manual organ with obligatory pedal in E♭ Major. Bach’s abilities as an organist were highly respected throughout Europe during his lifetime. Sleepers Awake tab is transcribed to the key of C making it easier to play on the guitar. This piece is played with many open strings reducing the need for barred chords.

Sleepers Awake is from Cantanta No.140 Ephesians No.5(14)
4/4 Time Signature
C Key Signature
Originally for Organ in Eb Major

Suspend notes as long as possible. Bach uses conterpoints. 2 voices-treble and bass. The 2 voices should be unbroken throughout the song. Play slowly. Add trill at the end of the 2 parts.

Bar[12] Ending of part 1. Series of semiquavers double stops(2 notes).
Bar[20] Only measure with barred chords. A pair of them on fret 3. You don’t necessaily need to barre (2 notes) but I find it easier to barre to sound the bass note.
Bar[23] Hinged Barre chord. Flatten index to rapidly barred the string below (treble e).
Bar[24] Ending of part 2. Series of semiquavers double stops(2 notes).

Excerpt from Johann Sebastian Bach's Sleepers Awake

Further Reading
I learnt Sleepers Awake from Ben Bolt’s book. Mel Bay J. S. Bach for Acoustic Guitar: 12 Solos in Notation and Tablature [Paperback]

Product Description
J. S. Bach is the most sought after composers of all time. He is everybody’s favorite! Best selling author Ben Bolt has inked 12 solos for guitar in this book. Included are moderate to advanced solos in notation and tablature. All 12 solos are recorded in order like the book. The recording can easily stand on it’s own for your listening pleasure, or can be used as an instructional tool. Professor Bolt also includes a copy of Bach’s original manuscript of Partita No. 1 for cross-reference purposes. Includes the following pieces: Sleepers Awake! (from Cantata No. 140), Gavotte, Prelude (from 3rd Cello Suite), Courante (from 3rd Cello Suite), Corrente (from 1st Violin Partita), Bourrée (from 1st Violin Parita), Prelude in D (from 1st Cello Suite), Gigue (from 1st Cello Suite), Sarabande (from 2nd Lute Suite), Gigue (from 2nd Lute Suite), Courante (from 1st Lute Suite) and Fugue.

Chamber Music. Partita for unaccompanied flute. The sarabande is a slow and stately dance in triple meter with an accent on the second beat. It evolved from zarabanda, a dance from 16th century Mexico. Hold all bass notes as long as possible. keep the trills fast. The flute version is slightly different towards the end 1:33 onwards (listen to the midi) Notes here are actually many octaves higher-and sounds cooler. I have tried to play this at this range (beyond the 12 fret) but decided against it due to great difficulty. I am guessing that the flute’s tonal range can go much higher than a guitar. I feel the flute and guitar don’t translate as well as other instruments. Because of this I imagine, the guitar version of bwv1012 sarabande may be much harder to play than on the flute. Anyway, this is my 20th bach song. Enjoy!

Technique/Tips
3/4 Time Signature. 46 Bars. Standard Tuning.
Pay extra attention to left fingering. Think about shortest distances between each chord. ie economy of movement. In order to make this song work. keep the bass note suspended. This is crucial as bach’s signature is counterpoints. 2 or more voices. If any left hand fingering seems awkward, please adapted to your own way.

Excerpt from Bach's Sarabande NWV1013 in A Minor

Bar[6]-[8] and Bar[34]-[36]
Trills. that’s rapid pull off and hammer ons.
Bar[10]-[11] and Bar[40]-[43]
Semi Quavers – fastest part of the song. its not about speed but keeping the bass notes held and uniformity of tempo.
Bar[43] Hard Chord with pull off. Make sure your 4 fingers (left hand) are in chord position at the very beginning (before pull off). That means 1st on D, 2nd on G#, 3rd on E and 4th on E#.

Further Reading
I learnt Bwv1013 Sarabande in A minor from this book: Bach for Guitar by Howard Wallach. 14 pieces from Easy to Intermediate introducing a brief song introduction and tab. This book comes with plenty of drawings and a full explanation of signs and symbols used in the book. 47 pages in paperpack, Alfred Publishing.

The Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin (BWV 1001–1006) are a set of six works composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. They consist of three sonatas da chiesa, in four movements, and three partitas, in dance-form movements. The set was completed by 1720, but was only published in 1802 by Nicolaus Simrock in Bonn. Even after publication, it was largely ignored until the celebrated violinist Josef Joachim started performing these works. The pieces often served as an archetype for solo violin pieces for the following generations of composers. BWV1002 Sarabande (Violin Partita No 1 in B minor) is a slow tempo tune. It is not very long with 32 bars. This tune is all left hand (chords) and notes must be held as long as possible.

Tips and Technique
Partita No. 1 in B minor, BWV 1002

1. Allemanda – Double
2. Corrente – Double (Presto)
3. Sarabande - Double
4. Tempo di Borea – Double

This partita substitutes a Bourrée (marked Tempo di Borea) for the gigue, and each movement is followed by variations called double in French.

Play slowly. 3/4 Time Signature. Standard Tuning.
Play both parts twice (AABB). 32 measures.
Hold notes are long as possible to fill the void. All chords are plucked. Do not strum. No sliding notes as well.

Bar[19] A left hand stretch. Index on 6th string 3 fret(G) while pinky on 1 string 7 fret(B). Turn your wrist towards you at a diagonal angle.
Bar[21] has a faster semi quaver. Pay attention to the right hand.
Bar[25] Trio of chords. You can barre these if you like. I prefer not to.

midi

Excerpt from Bach BWV1002 Sarabande in B Minor

Further Reading
I learnt BWV1002 Sarabande from this book: Bach for Guitar by Howard Wallach. 14 pieces from Easy to Intermediate introducing a brief song introduction and tab. This book comes with plenty of drawings and a full explanation of signs and symbols used in the book. 47 pages in paperpack, Alfred Publishing.

This serene and beautiful piece is taken from Sonata ii of Bach’s six sonatas and partitas for unaccompanied violin. It fits on the guitar fingerboard so well that it is unnecessary to alter a single note of the original for this transcription. Only the tempo and fingerings for guitar have been added. The violin of Bach’s day had a somewhat flatter bridge and was played with a slightly more curved bow than the modern violin. These two factors made it easier for violinists of the time to play chords on two, three or four strings of the instrument. This accounts for the multi-voiced texture and full-sounding chords of this piece.

Technique
Play AAB. Repeat Part A (twice) conclude with part B (twice)
Bar[9]-[27]- 32nd Note. Slurs or cross-string fingering 29 total bars. 8th notes in all measures except Bar[9] and [25]-[26]. Bar[9] and [27] 32nd note flourishes are either performed with slurs (hammer-ons and pull-offs) or cross string-fingerings. A cross-string fingering is one in which stepwise notes are fingered on different strings rather than along a single string. This is the easiest way to play fast scales.
Bar[7] and [26] I have left the optional notes in brackets (3) on the 1st E string. I opted for the g note on the open g string (4th string). I have included the original fingering. If you can reach the bass G note, go for it.

Excerpt from bach bwv 1003 andante

Tips
The most noticeable aspect of this work is the bass line in constant eighth notes, which is present for all but four measures. To avoid sounding monotonous, try to play the bass line in as musical and expressive as possible. To gain as much separation as possible between the melody and the bassline, be sure to play all the bass notes with the thumb

Download Tab | Download Midi

Further Reading
I learnt Bwv1003 Andante from this book: Bach for Guitar by Howard Wallach. 14 pieces from Easy to Intermediate introducing a brief song introduction and tab. This book comes with plenty of drawings and a full explanation of signs and symbols used in the book. 47 pages in paperpack, Alfred Publishing.

Johann Sebastian Bach wrote compositions for every type of instrument and for every musical medium (solo instruments, chamber ensemble, orchestra, and chorus) except opera. Famous not only as a composer, but as an organist, harpsichordist and the general improviser of the age, Bach held a number of important posts as music director in the cities of Weimar, Cothen and Leipzig. BWV1007 Minuet 2 is a Cello Suite (No.1 in G). Adapted to the guitar in the key of D. Drop D Tuning.

Technique
24 Unique Bars. 10 Bars with barre Chords. AABB. Play Part A twice followed by Part B Twice.
Minuet starts off slow with a mournful tone. Part 2 notes becomes faster with more notes hence more challenging.
Bar[15]. 3 Barre Chords delivered swiftly.

Parts that took me some time…

Bar[13]-[15] Hold Barre Chord for 2 full measures while playing the melody.
Bar[15] Trio of Barre Chords to be delivered swiftly.
Bar[17]and [19] Quick delivery of notes. Keep in time and make sure notes are heard!
Bar[21]-[24] 3 measures notes runs. Keep in time to closure.
Midi plays both 2 minuets in the key of G. Minuet 2 can be found at 0:58 -2:04

Excerpts from Bach's BWV1007 Minuet 2

Tips
If you encounter a bar that causes some problems. Don’t give up! Try and look for equivalent notes on different strings. Look for alternate chord shapes to play the same notes elsewhere along the fret. You may be able to find an easier way and thus providing a solution to overcome that particular part of the song.

Full TAB in txt | Song in MIDI

Further Reading
I learnt “BWV1007 Minuet 2″ from this book: Classical Guitar of Bach by Joseph Harris. 24 pieces from Intermediate onwards. A budget book of 80 pages in paperback, Creative concepts publishing corporation.

Johann Sebastian Bach will be forever revered for his intellectual depth, technical command and artistic beauty. In his Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello, you can hear some of the greatest works ever written for solo cello. The Prelude, mainly consisting of arpeggiated chords, is probably the best known movement from the entire set of suites and is regularly heard on television and in films. I first heard this song played by the cellist yoyoma many moons ago. Preulde in D is full of arpeggios and scale runs which gives challenge to both hands.

Technique
42 unique bars. Tune down to D. Adapted from (Cello Suite No 1 in G)

To make it easier to play, I tried to maximize open strings and the use hammer on pull offs. Yep. Loads of slurs. Feel free to change. I urge you to find your own right hand fingering because I use one finger for most of the solo run. May not be technically correct but it works for me. This song may take a starting classical guitarist some time to master. Break bwv1007 prelude up into sections of 4-8 bars-practice like hell-and piece them all back together. Good luck!

Bar[1]-[22] Arpeggios (Chords after Chords)
Bar[22] Flattern Previous Chord to form a Barre Chord (5th fret)
Bar[24]-[30] Scales running up and down the fretboard. Have fun!
Bar[31]-[37] Pay attention at right hand fingering.(pi-pi-pi) it is Not always uniform. you have to change to (pi,m) when playing the bass note A.
Bar[39]-[42] last 3 bars so finish strong. Hold Barre chord for double bass notes suspension during the arpeggios! Last bar. Strum D chord downwards with thumb.

Arpeggios from bach's prelude in d bwv1007

Tips
Bar[24]-[30] took me the longest to master. The long passage of scales running up and down the fretboard. Use the Bass notes as metronome keep all notes identical in rhythm and tempo.

Full TAB in txt | Song in MIDI

Further Reading
I learnt “BWV1007 Prelude in D” from this book: Classical Guitar of Bach by Joseph Harris. 24 pieces from Intermediate onwards. A budget book of 80 pages in paperback, Creative concepts publishing corporation.

This minuet is taken from Bachs Lute Suite No.4 in E Major which is a transcription from Bach’s Partita III for the solo violin. BWV1006a is a graceful and formal french dance in vogue during the middle 1600’s to 1800 – when it was replaced by the waltz. By 1700, the minuet became part of the standard Baroque suite. All minuets have 3 beats per measure, often with 2 or 3 changes of harmony in each measure.

Technique
BWV1006a- Lute Suite No.4 Minuet I in E
Time Signature 3/4. 34 Bars. Moderate to Brisk. AABB

This minuet in E Major consists mostly of 2 or 3 notes played together (chords in harmony). BWV1006a is technically demanding for both hands so start slow. Notes of the chords must be played simutaneously therefore land the chords in time by thinking ahead. It may feel awkward at first but keep practising and you WILL memorize the chords shape automatically.

Counterpoint. You will need to hold the bass note for the entire measure thru out the song. In BWV1006a, you have 2 voices: the bass-root note (voice 1) and the melody (voice 2). Counterpoint (interplay of 2 or more voices) won’t work if the bass note is short lived or absent during the melody run. You need the bass note to be present and not fade out or expire by the end of the measure. Bar[21]-[23] proved to be a section for me I spent the most time on.

Bar[5]-[6]. The transition of one barre chord to another barred chord after a hammer on is rather difficult here. Left Fingering is important. Keep the third finger on G# (high E, 4th fret) during hammer on and keep it there to form the next barre chord. Basically use your left 3rd finger as pivot during the 2 Barre chord transition. Although both barre chords occur on the 2nd fret, I barre twice rather than hold the barre. This took some time to get used to. Practice by going back and forth between latter part of bar[5] and start of bar[6] to get familiarize with the motion.

Tricky Areas
Bar[5] Barre chord hammer on. Use third finger as pivot then switch to next barre chord…
Bar[6] …followed by rapid shift of barred chords with individual string picking
Bar[11] More chords. Pay heed to careful fingering. Think ahead
Bar[21]-[23] Trio of Barred Chords (bass should be held during the melody run)

Excerpt from Bach's Minuet BWV1006a

Tips
Hear this minuet first and know it! In general for Bach I memorize (notes)-until my short term memory fails me. For pieces longer than 2 pages, I do not want to flip during play. Knowing the song by heart will give you the advantage of thinking ahead. When i say this I mean while playing a chord, think of planting the next chord (which finger to which string). Since this minuet has a lots of chords, anticipating the next step helps.

Full TAB in txt | Song in MIDI

Further Reading
I learnt “BWV1006a Minuet in E” from this book: Classical Guitar of Bach by Joseph Harris. 24 pieces from Intermediate onwards. A budget book of 80 pages in paperback, Creative concepts publishing corporation.

Anh 121 is originally written for the piano and is taken from the Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach. This minuet contains both the charm and the emotional depth characteristic of J.S.Bach. The Notebook for Anna Magdalena is a collection of work Johann Sebastian Bach given to his second wife Anna Magdalena. This notebook is a compilation of music by both Bach and other composers of the era. This notebook provides a nearly unparalleled glimpse into the domestic music of the 18th century and the musical tastes of the Bach family.

Technique
Play AABB. 3/4 Time Signature. 23 bars.
Part A has a fast 6 note trill. On the left hand, use 213121 (index,middle,ring) to deliver a 6 note trill (hammering and pulling off on the same note).
Part B has 2 triplets. The first one-hardest part of anh121 for me- jumps around. Take note of left fingering to minimize movement between chords.
The final section of Part B has a series of sparse 2 notes harmony. Suspend the notes to fill the gaps.

Excerpt from JSBach's Prelude in C minor Anh121

Tips
Part A has a trill which mimic the piano. If you find the 6 note 3 finger trill too hard, you can eliminate one finger and use 2 fingers 212121-middle and index to deliver the 6 notes rapidly. When you are comfortable with that go back to using 3 fingers.

Full TAB in txt | Song in MIDI

Further Reading
I learnt “Anh 121 Minuet in C minor” from this book: Classical Guitar of Bach by Joseph Harris. 24 pieces from Intermediate onwards. A budget book of 80 pages in paperback, Creative concepts publishing corporation.

Marche in D is originally written for the harpsichord. This piece is taken from Anna Magdalena’s Notebook, Bach’s gift to his second wife. and a prized possession of the Bach household. Marche in D possess the characteristic earmarks of Bach’s music in both the catchy nature of the tune and its particular use of counterpoint (2 or more lines of melody sounding simultaneously). For the solo guitar, a counterpoint can create voices sounding like it came from multiple instrument.

Technique
Drop D tuning. First 3 bars, hold note to fill the texture. Part A Bar[9] A chord and Part B Bar[13] D chord. Correct fingering on the right hand is important to generate speed. Pluck the chord in rapid succession and end on the highnote. Part A is much easier than Part B. The latter has a long chain of melody playing bach’s signature conterpoint. 2 or more melody played at once. Suspend the bass and keep in time.

Excerpt from Marche in D (Anh122) by Johann Sebastian Bach

Tips
Part B, Bar[5]-end is the hardest section of the song. Start slow to avoid playing “catch-up” towards the end.

Full TAB in txt | Song in MIDI

Further Reading
I learnt Marche in D from this book: Bach for Guitar by Howard Wallach. 14 pieces from Easy to Intermediate introducing a brief song introduction and tab. This book comes with plenty of drawings and a full explanation of signs and symbols used in the book. 47 pages in paperpack, Alfred Publishing.