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In this solo section of the Viennese bass repertoire you will find all the known concertos and along many other solo pieces that you probably have never heard of before. The profile of this solo section is again conditioned by the period perception of solo, or concertato playing, and could often not be synchronized with our modern concept of "soloist vs. orchestra " practice, that has crystallized later by the beginning of the 19th century.
You will find here listed all the known genres that feature the solo Viennese bass at the time od Viennese classicism, with the exception of "Solo with Piano" and "Orchestra solos" sections, that are still in process of research and definition. Otherwise, please note a separate section for "Solo Chamber Music" where you will find the famous Hoffmeister solo quartets and the two pieces by Sperger, which have been composed in a more traditional solo style. The question of how much differentiation between the bass solo and the rest of concertato group would make a distinction between the true solo and the "occasional solo" will remain open, as it used to vary very much during the period too. Yet, for now I trust that such a separation may offer much better insight to the prospective performers of what demands they may expect from the pieces, than what was offered in the previous catalogs.
In addition, for some of the genres a comprehensive sub classification has been established for extant, incomplete, lost, spurious and the "spurious & lost" pieces. The idea was to differentiate clearly between what is known and what is yet to be discovered, rather than just join all of the pieces in one classification. If at any time in the future some of these pieces become more researched or even rediscovered, it will be easy to reclassify them to the other categories.
The forewords for each individual section are unfortunately not finished at this time, as much deeper investigation of the original sources will be required to complete the introductions for each genre. In technical terms, each of these genres separately could offer enough material for a solid curricular or even dissertation work. Thus the summaries that should precede each genre listing are left for future, and meanwhile it is hoped that even the mere listings with the commentary will incite the new interest and appreciation of our undiscovered heritage.
Posted: November 1, 2011
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