# Bach's Double Violin Concerto



## Aurelian

The slow movement of Bach's Double Violin Concerto is one of the best pieces ever written. My problem with the concerto is the 3rd movement. The tempo marking is Allegro, yet too often I hear it played with a "Let's rush through this as fast as we can" approach. Do you mind the fast tempo?


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## Delicious Manager

I'd rather have a fast tempo (allegro means 'fast', after all) than the slow, plodding renditions we used to have to suffer before the period-instrument movement pointed out that Bach wasn't joking when he asked for some of his music to be played faster than 'Andante'.


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## Cosmos

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the Baroque music world generally play faster than we do currently?


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## ArtMusic

Aurelian said:


> The slow movement of Bach's Double Violin Concerto is one of the best pieces ever written. My problem with the concerto is the 3rd movement. The tempo marking is Allegro, yet too often I hear it played with a "Let's rush through this as fast as we can" approach. Do you mind the fast tempo?


This violin concerto is one of the finest ever written and the slow movement is a true beauty of the entire history of western classical music. Yes the final movement tends to be played faster with the period instrument bands interpreting it almost gigue like to finish the work with spirited play. I prefer a sensible pace but not presto.


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## haydnfan

Kuijken and Lucy van Dael take a good tempo in the last movement. They are neither too fast nor too slow. The fastest I've heard is Standage/Pinnock, but the precision in the playing is such that I feel that they pull it off.


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## Guest

Did you know that Dave Mann used the chord progression of the first movement to write the music for the 1947 jazz classic "No Moon At All"?


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