Music with Ease > Classical Music > Concert Guide: Baroque Era > Suite No 4 (J S Bach)

The movement of Bach's Fourth Suite, in D, are Overture, Bourrées 1 and 2, Gavotte, Minuets 1 and 2, and Réjouissance. The Overture is in the usual form. The first Bourrée is constructed in two parts, both repeated, with this distinction, that in the first part of the woodwinds have the theme with string acompaniment, and in the second the strings have the theme with woodwind accompaniment. The second Bourrée contains solos for oboe and basson with a string accompaniment. The Gavotte and Minuets closely resemble these forms in the other suites. The last movement, like that of the Suite No. 2, is in triple time, very bold in style, and sprightly as a dance movement. Its name "Réjouissance" (merriment), like "Badinerie," which is affixed to the last movement of the Second Suite, does not refer to the form but to the nature of the music. The most remarkable feature of these suites is that they are bright, cheerful, and even gay in character, and that they were written by Bach at a great time of great anxiety and trouble.