Cello Suite No.1, Prelude BWV1007
J.S.Bach / Arr. Riku Fujita
Level-4 ★★★★☆
Video
Performance + Slow TAB Tutorial
Sheet Music
Included in Collections
Classical Masterpieces Vol.1
A collection of 13 timeless classical masterpieces arranged for solo classical guitar.
From approachable shorter works to more challenging repertoire, this volume offers a wide range of pieces for players at different levels.
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J.S.Bach Masterpieces Vol. 1
A collection of 10 well-known works by J.S. Bach, arranged for solo classical guitar.
Each piece is included in two versions: standard notation with TAB, and standard notation only, making the collection suitable both for players who prefer TAB and for those who normally read standard notation alone.
The scores also include detailed left-hand fingering and barre indications, following standard classical guitar notation to make the music clear and easy to read even without TAB.
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About This Piece
Bach’s Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello
The Cello Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007 is the first of Johann Sebastian Bach’s six suites for unaccompanied cello, BWV 1007–1012.
The suites are generally associated with Bach’s years at the court of Köthen, between approximately 1717 and 1723.
Each suite begins with a freely composed Prelude, followed by a sequence of stylized dance movements such as the Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, and Gigue.
Today, the six suites stand at the very heart of the cello repertoire. They are studied by developing players and continually revisited by the world’s leading cellists, offering both technical challenges and an extraordinary range of interpretive possibilities.
Bach’s own autograph manuscript has not survived. The suites are known through several later sources, including an important manuscript copied by his wife, Anna Magdalena Bach. As a result, questions concerning articulation, phrasing, and other details continue to invite different interpretations.
The Most Famous Prelude of the Cello Suites
Of all six suites, the Prelude from Suite No. 1 is by far the most widely recognized.
Its opening pattern of continuously flowing broken chords has become one of the most familiar sounds in the classical repertoire, recognizable even to many listeners who may not know the title of the work.
The original is in G major, and the opening makes especially effective use of the cello’s resonant open G, D, and A strings.
Although the page may initially appear to consist of a continuous stream of similar notes, the harmony is constantly changing underneath. The register gradually expands, tension rises and falls, and the music ultimately builds toward a powerful climax near the end of the Prelude.
One of the remarkable qualities of this piece is the way Bach creates a large and compelling musical structure from an apparently simple succession of broken chords.
From Cello to Classical Guitar
The suites were written for a single cello, an instrument that normally presents music primarily as a melodic line, although it is also capable of double stops and chords.
In Bach’s unaccompanied string music, a single sequence of notes can often suggest much more than one melody. Changes of register, arpeggios, and widely separated notes allow the listener to sense underlying harmony, bass movement, and even the suggestion of several independent voices.
The classical guitar approaches this music from a different perspective. Because several strings can continue sounding at the same time, the guitarist can sometimes sustain notes that are only implied harmonically in the cello original.
This gives the guitar the opportunity to reveal some of the harmony and voice-leading hidden within Bach’s single-line writing.
At the same time, the guitar cannot reproduce the cello’s sustained bowing or the same depth of low-register resonance. A successful transcription therefore involves more than simply transferring the notes: it requires finding a guitaristic way of expressing the harmonic structure and musical flow of the original.
The Prelude has a long history on the classical guitar and has become one of the most frequently performed guitar transcriptions of Bach’s music.
About This Classical Guitar Arrangement
Bach’s original Prelude is in G major, while this classical guitar arrangement is transposed to D major.
The sixth string is also tuned down from E to D, using Drop D tuning.
Combining D major with the low open D allows the guitar to make fuller use of its lowest register and helps recreate something of the depth and resonance of the cello original.
The structure of the piece is not shortened or altered. This is a complete arrangement of the Prelude, following the same musical progression from beginning to end as Bach’s original.
The original patterns and harmonic movement are preserved while the placement of notes and fingering are adapted to take advantage of the natural resonance and possibilities of the classical guitar.
Playing Tips
Think in Large Phrases, Not Individual Notes
The score presents an almost uninterrupted stream of notes from beginning to end.
Because of this, it is easy to focus entirely on playing every note at exactly the same speed and with the same weight. The result, however, can quickly begin to sound mechanical.
Instead, try to hear larger phrases and harmonic directions within the continuous pattern.
There is no need to force the tempo to remain absolutely rigid throughout the entire Prelude.
When a figure rises and the music gains tension, you may allow it to move slightly forward. When the line descends or the harmony relaxes, you may give the music a little more space.
The goal is not exaggerated Romantic rubato, but a natural flexibility that allows the phrasing to breathe.
Use small changes of pace where they feel musically convincing, and choose a tempo at which you can maintain both clarity and a natural sense of direction.
Why Some Open-String Notes Are Written as Fretted Notes
In this arrangement, some notes that could easily be played on an open string are intentionally fingered on another string instead.
This occurs frequently with notes such as E and B.
There are two main reasons for these fingerings: maintaining a consistent left-hand position and maintaining a consistent tone color.
Think in Terms of Left-Hand Positions
For example, when playing in second position, the first finger generally covers the second fret, with the remaining fingers naturally extending through the third, fourth, and fifth frets.
If an E is required in this position, it could be played as the open first string. However, the same E is also available at the fifth fret of the second string.
Using the fretted E allows the hand to remain within the same position rather than momentarily changing the left-hand concept simply because an open string is available.
Instead of always asking, “Where is the easiest place to play this individual note?”, try to think about which position the entire phrase belongs to.
This approach often makes the fingering of longer passages more logical and predictable.
Fretted Notes Can Also Create a More Consistent Tone
The second reason is tone color.
An open string and the same pitch played as a fretted note do not sound exactly the same on the guitar.
Open strings tend to ring more brightly and freely. If the surrounding notes are being played on fretted strings, suddenly using an open string in the middle of the phrase can sometimes create an audible change in tone color.
Keeping a phrase on the same string, or on neighboring fretted strings, can help create a smoother and more consistent melodic line.
These fingerings are not absolute rules, however. If using the open string feels significantly more comfortable or produces a more secure performance, you are free to use it.
Think of fingering as a balance between position, tone color, and technical comfort, rather than something that must always be followed exactly as written.
Piece Information
- Composer
- J.S.Bach
- Arranger
- Riku Fujita
- Difficulty
- Level-4 ★★★★☆
- Tuning
- Drop D Tuning