Concerto in D minor for Two Violins
Although Bach’s indebtedness to Vivaldi is evident in the ritornello structure of the first movement, the opening section of this work is impressive in both its length and the fact that it is structured as an exposition to a fugue. The four solo episodes are unusual in that all are to some extent based on the same theme that is introduced in the first episode, rather than thematically unrelated as in most other works of this era. A single statement of the ritornello theme closes the movement. The ternary slow movement contains two statements of the primary theme, the first of which enters on the tonic F major in one violin before being answered in the dominant by the other soloist. The ripieno provides only harmonic background to the two violins who alternate in playing thematic material or providing supportive filigree. Bach’s imaginative relationship between tutti and the soli is evident in the third movement in which several themes function in the manner of a ritornello; however, the first of these themes is introduced not by the ripieno but by the soloists. Only at the end of this lengthy section does the tutti play a typical unison figure. A second tutti section with a different theme, accompanied by repeated notes from the soloists, serves to further divide the work into solo and tutti sections.
