English Suites, BWV 806 – 811

Johann Sebastian Bach, the German composer, wrote his earliest six English Suites for harpsichord or clavichord, probably dating from 1715 or 1717.  In all, he wrote 19 suites for keyboard that included the Frech Suites, the six Partitas and the Overture in the French style. There is no complete autograph manuscript of these magnificent Six Suittes avec leurs Preludes pour le Clavecin. This is the title given in perhaps the closest source to Bach, having been copied by a pupil, and which contains seven bars of Bach’s own manuscript in the Prelude of the third Suite. This title best describes and points out the real significance of the Preludes in the musical progression and discourse within the cycle of six. Each of the suites is headed by an extraordinary introductory Prelude of brilliant and substantial proportions. These Preludes gain in stature and power as we travel through the set. 

The term "English" is not by Bach and there is nothing particularly English about these works and even less affinity with Baroque English keyboard style. Surface characteristics of the English Suites strongly resemble those of Bach's French Suites and Partitas, particularly in the sequential dance-movement structural organization and treatment of ornamentation; typified by the generation of composers including Jean-Henri d'Anglebert, and the dance-suite tradition of French lutenists that preceded it. According to Bach's biographer, Forkel (1802), they were written for an "eminent Englishman," which is the origin of their name. A hint for that is also found on a manuscript of Bach's son. Originally they were called just "Suites with a Prelude." The Preludes are indeed what distinguish them most from the French suites, and make them closer in character to the later partitas. 
 
In these Suites, Bach's affinity with French lute music is demonstrated by his inclusion of a prelude for each suite, departing from an earlier tradition of German derivations of French suite, which saw a relatively strict progression of the dance movements (viz., Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, and Gigue) and which did not typically feature a Prelude. Unlike the unmeasured preludes of French lute or keyboard style, however, Bach's preludes in the English Suites are composed in strict meter. Allemande was a German dance in 4 of moderate tempo. Bach's Allemandes have usually a particularly rich imitative contrapuntal texture. Courante was a French dance in 3, of heavy and slow beats. Note-wise Bach's Courantes sound fast because there are many notes in between the beats. They are usually rather eccentric in rhythm and often have an unusual and asymmetric phrase structure. Sarabande was a slow Spanish dance of highly emotional character, and Bach's Sarabandes retain that character. Gigue was a fast dance, probably originated in England. Many of Bach's gigues are fast fugues. In Bach's suites all these are usually divided into two parts. Almost always there are additional movements (Minuet, Bourrée, Gavotte, etc.) that change from suite to suite, usually between the Sarabande and the Gigue. The above characterizations apply in general to all the suites, but there are exceptions (e.g. the Allemande of the 4thpartita in D). It is almost certain that in spite of their dance-origins Bach's suites were not intended as dance music and were not actually danced. 
 
The six suites are:
Suite No. 1 in A major, BWV 806
I.Prelude
II.Allemande
III.Courante I
IV.Courante II
V.Double I
VI.Double II
VII.Sarabande
VIII.Bourrée I
IX.Bourrée II
X.Gigue

Suite No. 2 in A minor, BWV 807

1. Prelude
2. Allemande
3. Courante
4. Sarabande
5. Bourrée I
6. Bourrée II
7. Gigue

​Suite No. 3 in G minor, BWV 808

1. Prelude
2. Allemande
3. Courante
4. Sarabande
5. Gavotte I
6. Gavotte II
7. Gigue

Suite No. 4 in F major, BWV 809

1. Prelude
2. Allemande
3. Courante
4. Sarabande
5. Menuet I
6. Menuet II
7. Gigue

 
Suite No. 5 in E minor, BWV 810

1. Prelude
2. Allemande
3. Courante
4. Sarabande
5. Passepied I
6. Passepied II
7. Gigue

 
Suite No. 6 in D minor, BWV 811

1. Prelude
2. Allemande
3. Courante
4. Sarabande
5. Double
6. Gavotte I
7. Gavotte II
8. Gigue

 
The English suites form a definite set (not just a collection of suites), which is indicated by their keys: A (twice), G, F, E, D in that order, which form a descending fifth, and is the melody of the famous chorale "Jesu, mine Freude." Also, the first and last suites are especially long and have 10 and 8 movements respectively (since the prelude in the last one has a long introduction followed by an Allegro, one can even speak of 9 movements). The inner four suites have 7. This first suite is unusual in that it has two courantes and two doubles for the second courante. This suite also departs from the scheme of the other five, in that the prelude is short and based on a theme from a suite by Dieupart. The preludes of the other five suites in this series are based on the allegro of a concerto grosso form. 
 
The great organist and Bach scholar, Albert Schweitzer, writes that Bach's suites surpass previous ones in that he "always visualizes the form, and gives each of the principal dance forms a definite musical personality [...] He thus raises the suite form to the plane of the highest art, while at the same time he preserves its primitive character as a collection of dance pieces." In general the English suites are grand and vigorous in comparison to the more modest and simpler French Suites. In the notes for Gould's recording of the English Suites, Leslie Gerber quotes C. S. Terry describing their character as "of happy humour and exuberant good nature ... [Bach] was an incorrigible optimist, and so his Suites proclaim him." 
 
Here are four albums:
 
J.S. Bach: The English Suites. Richard Egarr (harpsichord, by Joel Katzman, Amsterdam, 1991, after Ruckers, Antwerp, 1638. Pitch: a’ = 409 • Temperament: Egarr, based on 18th-century models). Release Date: 11 Feb 2013. Label: Harmonia Mundi. Catalogue No: HMU907591/92. Hi-Res FLAC (Lossless, 88.2 kHz, 24 bit).
Awards:
BBC Music Magazine, March 2013, Instrumental Choice.
BBC Music Magazine Awards, 2014, Instrumentalist Finalist.
 
Bach: The English Suites. Angela Hewitt (piano). Release Date: 7 Sept 2003. Label: Hyperion. Catalogue No: CDA67451-2. FLAC (CD Quality, 44.1 kHz, 16 bit).
Award:
Radio 3 Building a Library, January 2004, First Choice.
 
Bach: English Suites Nos. 1, 3 & 6. Murray Perahia (piano). Release Date: 7 Mar 2011. Label: Sony. Catalogue No: COLSK60276. FLAC (CD Quality, 44.1 kHz, 16 bit).
Award:
Grammy Awards, 41st Awards (1998), Best Classical Instrumental, Solo Recording.
 
Bach: English Suites Nos. 1, 3 & 5. Piotr Anderszewski (piano). Release Date: 3 Nov 2014. Label: Erato. Catalogue No: 2564621939. Hi-Res FLAC (Lossless, 96 kHz, 24 bit).
Awards:
Gramophone Awards, 2015, Winner – Instrumental.
Gramophone Magazine, February 2015, Disc of the Month.
 

​References:
Bar-Elli, G. (2018). J.S. Bach: The English Suites. Bar-Elli.Co.Il. https://www.bar-elli.co.il/Bach-Eng-Suites.pdf
 
Egarr, R. (2012). Johann Sebastian Bach: The English Suites. Harmonia Mundi.
 
English Suites by Bach. (2023, November 21). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Suites_(Bach)