Suite in F major (Score & Parts)

Witt Suite in F major (Score & Parts)

Suite in F major for two Treble Recorders and one Tenor Recorder or other instruments and Basso continuo.

The composer of this Suite, Christian Friedrich Witt, is little-known.  He was born about 1660 at Altenburg as the son of the court organist J. Ernst Witt. Following his studies, particularly those with G. K. Wecker at Nuremberg, which were financed by the Duke Friedrich I of Gotha-Altenburg, he was appointed court organist.

That he was at least a composer of quality is proved by the fact that his Passacaglia (D minor) was wrongly attributed to Bach.  The present Suite in F, together with an additional one in B-flat and several other instrumental works (Overtures, Sonata), is preserved in Kassel as a manuscript in six parts.  In accordance with the usage of the time and the tonal range, this is undoubtedly a work written for recorders.

Thus this Suite may be regarded as one of the few works in which express mention is made of the tenor recorder “Flauto Taillo”.  But in addition, in accordance with the musical tasteof the time, further instrumentations are possible, in particular mixed ensemble, strings and wind.  Indication of the latter is made by the reference to instrumentation “Violino ô Flauto”.