Hyperion Records

The Concerto No 4 in A major, BWV1055 is probably based on a lost concerto for oboe d’amore (indeed it is often heard these days on that instrument). It opens with a high-spirited Allegro which adopts the essential feature of the concerto grosso – the opposition between tutti and soli passages. It is followed by a beautiful Larghetto in F sharp minor, in the tempo of a siciliano, thus bearing a slight resemblance to the slow movement of the E major concerto. The final Allegro ma non tanto is the most delicate last movement of the seven concertos. This lilting, menuet-like movement has immense grace, although its opening theme is not without bravura.

from notes by Angela Hewitt © 2005