Dissertation
Bach through the romantic lens: four nineteenth-century piano accompaniments to the sonatas and partitas for solo violin
University of Iowa
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA), University of Iowa
Spring 2026
Abstract
The Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin (1720) by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)are now widely considered to be among the most important pieces ever written for the
instrument. Despite their current acclaim, they were not widely known in Bach’s lifetime, and
only emerged into the concert space during the mid-nineteenth century. This public acceptance
was facilitated by the composition of accompanimental material for the piano which was added
to the Sonatas and Partitas by four composers including Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), Franz
Wilhelm Ressel (1811-1888), Robert Schumann (1810-1856), and Bernhard Molique (1802-
1869). These accompaniments processed Bach’s original material, extracting, adapting, and repurposing musical elements to elicit accompaniment that clarifies and supports original work,
and most early performances of the Sonatas and Partitas were given with this additional piano
material.
This DMA Thesis constitutes a historical contextualization of the first four published sets
of accompaniments to the Sonatas and Partitas, an analysis of the accompaniments to selected
movements from throughout the work, and a new engraving of the accompaniment by Bernhard
Molique to the Adagio and Fuga from the Sonata in G-minor, which have not received an
updated edition and have only survived in dated and aging physical sheet music until this point.
Through my analysis, I seek to develop an understanding of the way in which each of these
composers processed and added to the music of Bach while reflecting on the ways in which the
addition of accompaniment might have affected performance and reception of these works.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Bach through the romantic lens: four nineteenth-century piano accompaniments to the sonatas and partitas for solo violin
- Creators
- Yestyn David Griffith
- Contributors
- Scott Conklin (Advisor)Christine Rutledge (Committee Member)David Gompper (Committee Member)Volkan Orhon (Committee Member)
- Resource Type
- Dissertation
- Degree Awarded
- Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA), University of Iowa
- Degree in
- Music (String)
- Date degree season
- Spring 2026
- Publisher
- University of Iowa
- Number of pages
- xv, 224 pages
- Copyright
- Copyright 2026 Yestyn David Griffith
- Language
- English
- Date submitted
- 04/27/2026
- Description illustrations
- music
- Description bibliographic
- Includes bibliographical references (page 209-214).
- Public Abstract (ETD)
In 1720, Johann Sebastian Bach composed the Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin (violin without accompaniment), a collection of pieces now regarded as cornerstones of the violin repertoire. Despite their current recognition, these pieces were not performed until the mid-nineteenth century, when several composers added piano accompaniment to the works to align the works with contemporary tastes. These composers added material directly onto Bach’s composition, communicating the way that they understood Bach’s work and adding their own musical ideas. Although most performances of these pieces today are given without the use of this added material, these accompaniments were instrumental in helping these pieces emerge as standard and important repertoire.
In this DMA Thesis, I provide a historical contextualization of these accompaniments, an analysis of the accompaniments to several movements by different composers, and a new engraving of several accompaniments which have not been updated since their initial publication. Through this analysis, I seek to understand the ways in which these composers processed and added to the music of Bach, as well as the way that this added material might have influenced performance of this important work.
- Academic Unit
- School of Music
- Record Identifier
- 9985177374402771
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