French Suite no. 4 in E-flat major BWV 815 - Hantaï | Netherlands Bach Society

Bach frequently constructs melodies from small, simple elements, which he gradually expands. It often begins straightforwardly, with a little motif that could be devised by any composer, but soon becomes unmistakably Bach. ’French’ Suite no. 4, performed here by Pierre Hantaï for All of Bach, is a good example of this. Bach deliberately starts the Allemande with a simple form: arpeggios that gradually shift in harmony. It is reminiscent of the first prelude in the Wohltemperirte Clavier. He does something similar in the Gavotte, where nearly the whole piece is constructed of groups of two pairs of notes that keep repeating the same movement. Although this strategy is less evident in the other sections, on closer inspection you see that Bach does use it there as well. For instance, the Courante revolves around simple groups of three notes, but Bach occasionally adds a sudden big leap to them. And the end of the Gigue further emphasises the way he constructs a piece from simple elemen