In 1915, Arthur Somervell completed his 2 Conversations About Bach. Unfortunately, it was not published until 1924, and this alone, single-handedly, was enough to ensure its immediate disappearance. It was dedicated to two famous Hungarian violinists then living in England, Adila Fachiri and Jelly d'Aranyi, who were sisters. This was Somervell's tribute to Bach. The conversations are two-part inventions with a continuo accompaniment. They are each in a moderate tempo. Each movement begins sounding contrapuntally as if Bach had penned the music, but then, very skillfully, almost imperceptibly slips into his own voice.
Arthur Somervell (1863-1937) was born in the English town of Windermere. He studied composition with Charles Villiers Stanford at Cambridge University and Hubert Parry in London. Subsequently, on Stanford's recommendation, he went to Berlin, where he continued his studies with Friedrich Kiel, who had taught Stanford, and Woldemar Bargiel, who became a close friend of Brahms by virtue of being Clara Schumann's younger half-brother. Somervell pursued a dual career as a composer and teacher, serving as a professor at the Royal College of Music in London. Most of his works are for voice in one form or another.
These are two superb works. It seems clear that Somervell intended them to be played together, but this may well have been the publisher who brought them out in this fashion. They can be played separately if desired.
