Sharon Isbin, classical guitarist, Bach Sarabande BWV996

“I had the honor and good fortune of studying baroque performance practice for ten years with the great Bach scholar and keyboard artist, Dr. Rosalyn Tureck. Together we created landmark performance editions for guitar of the complete Bach lute suites, which I then recorded, and which are available on Warner Classics. Two pages of J.S. Bach’s “Sarabande” from Suite BWV 996 show: 1) a working copy of our evolving edition with my notations, and three of hers in wide dark script 2) a preliminary draft of the score in my handwriting as we prepared it for publication, corrections noted in red.

My work with Dr. Tureck on Bach, along with collaborations I’ve enjoyed with composers and performers in a variety of genres, is featured in the one-hour documentary, Sharon Isbin: Troubadour, winner of the ASCAP Television Broadcast Award, and shown on over 200 PBS stations and abroad (available in all formats, including Amazon streaming).

– Sharon Isbin, February 2023

Author’s Note: Ms. Isbin has been inducted into the 2023 Guitar Foundation of America Hall of Fame, rceiving their Artistic Achievement Award.

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