Bach: Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 in B-flat Major, BWV 1051Schumann: Dichterliebe, Op. 48Perhaps Bach’s best-known orchestral works, the Brandenburg concertos are performed often in concert, but this final concerto is not quite as famous as some of its predecessors. Bach chooses a mellow instrumentation for this concerto—all low strings, from viola down to cello and violone, an early bass instrument. But even with the unusual instrumentation, the piece is still signature Bach, with wonderful counterpoint, dance rhythms and variations. Next is Schumann’s famous song cycle “Dichterliebe.” In typical German Romantic fashion, the topic at hand is love, in this case the love of a poet. Our poet starts out optimistic, if not entirely secure, in the first song. But as the cycle progresses, the narrator becomes increasingly disenchanted, going from denial to overt sorrow in the final song, in which he longs to bury his songs, his dreams and his love.