JS Bach / J. Loussier: "Air on the G string"

Johann Sebastian Bach died in 1750, the same year an eminent English doctor who happened to be in Leipzig at the time, recommended the great musician an ophthalmic operation to avoid blindness. Overcoming his initial reticence, Johann Sebastian agreed. The eminent doctor carried out the operation, but it failed. Later on, the eminent doctor performed a second operation. This time, the father of Western music became completely blind.

Fortunately, Bach had already produced almost all the 1087 pieces included in the Bach Work Catalogue (BWV for Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis); he had tried practically all musical forms, with the exception of the opera, a genre he never tackled.

JS Bach composed four orchestral suites, of which suite No. 3 is one of the best known of all his orchestral production. This suite, also called Overture, consists of a succession of the dances of the time, whose French names —allemande, courante, bourrée, sarabande and others, ending with a gigue— reflect the influence of the French court during XVI and XVII centuries, a period during which such structure was all the rage.
The second movement of Suite No. 3 is an “air” that has become even more popular than the suite itself. Its musical beauty is sustained by a central melody that effectively interweaves with other melodic lines lead by a violin and a viola.

JS Bach. Air from Suite No. 3. The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra

Following Bach’s death, these suites fell into complete oblivion. Like so many of Johann Sebastian’s other works, the suites were heard again only since February 1838, when a young musician named Felix Mendelssohn, aged 29, conducted the complete Suite No. 3 in Leipzig.

There are many versions of different instruments for this “air”. One of these, arranged for violin and orchestra by a German composer during the 19th century, was most influential in establishing the popularity of the piece. Transposing the “air” from the original D major key to G major, he made it possible to play the main melody on one string only, the G string of the instrument. Thus, the moniker, "Air on the G string" was born.

A jazzy version
Back in the 60s, the jazz pianist Jacques Loussier completely “modernized" it, creating a radical change in the atmosphere of the piece. Accompanied only by a bass and percussion, this jazz version would have struck with astonishment poor Johann Sebastian.
Thanks to Mendelssohn, we can say Bach is still with us. Thanks to Jacques Loussier, we can say Bach is one of us.

The Jacques Loussier Trio - Air on the G string

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