Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Suite pour violoncelle n° 1 en sol majeur, BWV 1007
Suite pour violoncelle n° 2 en ré mineur, BWV 1008
Suite pour violoncelle n° 3 en do majeur, BWV 1009
Suite pour violoncelle n° 4 en mi bémol majeur, BWV 1010
Suite pour violoncelle n° 5 en do mineur, BWV 1011
Suite pour violoncelle n° 6 en ré majeur, BWV 1012
Choral pour orgue "Christ lag in todesbanden", BWV 625
Choral pour orgue "Liebster Jesu, wir sind hier", BWV 731
Choral pour orgue "Christus, der uns selig macht", BWV 620
Choral pour orgue "Herr Jesu christ, dich zu uns wend", BWV 726
Choral pour orgue "O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig", BWV 618
Choral pour orgue "Jesu, meine Freude", BWV 610
Choral pour orgue "Lob Gott, ihr Christen, allzugleich", BWV 609
Choral pour orgue "Herzlich tut mich verlange", BWV 727
Choral pour orgue "Wenn wir ihr höchsten Nöten sein/vor deinen Thron tret ich hiermit", BWV 668a

Valentin Erben, violoncelle
Sebastian Erben, orgue

Valentin Erben, cellist of the legendary Alban Berg Quartet, presents his recording of Johann Sebastian Bach's solo suites, recorded in Erben's 75th year. Together with his son Sebastian, Erben has given the cycle of cello suites a framework by adding nine organ chorales, as it were bridges between the individual suites. Erben's playing is at once powerful and humble, youthful yet wise – here we have an interpretation of these muchperformed works that counters those interpretations that ostensibly focus on the instrumental virtuosity of Bach's music. The "lifelong chamber musician" Erben appears here as a soloist in the truest sense of the word, and one may regret, for all the joy of this recording, that the world had to wait so long for it.