Bach’s G major prelude has captivated cellists and music lovers for years. In this episode of Earworm, cellist Alisa Weilerstein deconstructs it.

Bach’s six cello suites are considered a rite of passage for cellists. They’re masterpieces of classical music, and the prelude in G major — the first movement of the suites — is perhaps the best example of Bach’s power as a composer. In it, he’s able to achieve rich and complex harmonic movements, while using the very basic tenets of music composition.

Those basic tenets are what Alisa Weilerstein, a renowned cellist and McArthur fellow, helps us understand.