The avid Bach aficionado often reads about the early printed editions that laid an important foundation for the Bach Revival in the early 19th century that received so important and so dramatic a boost from the legendary 1829 Berlin performance of the Saint Matthew Passion under the direction of the then 20 year old Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, but one rarely if ever sees any of them. And most of these pioneering printed editions are scarce. Here are the title pages for some of them.

First, the title page of the first edition of the famous Ouverture No. 2 in B Minor, BWV 1067, the familiar "Orchestral Suite No. 2 for Flute and Strings". Believe it or not, this work -- among the most familiar and beloved of Bach's concerted instrumental compositions today -- was not printed until the middle of the 19th century. This copy was once in the library of the English publisher and musician, Vincent Novello, who played an important part in the revival of interest in Bach's music in Great Britain.

To be expanded...