Bach Partita in D, overture

[squarevince]

I've been working on Partita 4 for a couple weeks & have a question about the best way to learn the Overture, as precision in note lengths has been quite tricky.

Should I worry about note lengths right now, or wait until I've mastered the notes themselves before I focus on getting the cadence precise?  I don't want to learn it sloppily and then have trouble learning to to play it "correctly" later.

Also, while we're at it, how much do exam judges (i.e. LTCL) care about relatively "clean" Bach, as opposed to one that uses a lot of rubato?  Is it an issue?  (I know, rubato and sloppiness are not the same, but there is some overlap, especially since i'm no Perahia or Gould)

[j_menz]

Since the "note lengths" are the chief difficulty in learning this, I'd suggest you concentrate on getting them right from the start.

Always in Bach, you should endeavour to be able to play it metronome perfect.  I'd not suggest that you do so in performance, but any variations should be deliberate, not a reflection of sloppy timing.

[squarevince]

thanks.  that's kind of what i figured.  the metronome is my nemesis though.  yarrgh!

[bugrad]

Any amout of rubato in Bach can be frowned apon, but noone is going to critcize you for having perfect rhythm (or close to it).  Time for your metronome to become your best friend.     Good luck.....

[squarevince]

amazingly, mr metronome and i actually managed to get along just fine.  i was dreading it, but it actually helped a lot... a couple of hours working with it, and i had it down pretty well.  i don't know what i was whinging about.

[j_menz]

amazingly, mr metronome and i actually managed to get along just fine.

Cool.  Mr Metronome and I have mutual restraining orders.