Suite BWV 996 in E minor was named Lute Suite No. 1 by H.D. Bruger (1894-1932), a musicologist and lutenist of the early 20th century.

It consists of six movements: Prelude, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Bourrée, and Gigue.

This is the earliest work among the lute suites, and it captures the characteristics of keyboard instruments rather than the lute itself.

The Bourrée is a 17th-century dance written in a fast duple meter.

E minor, 2/2 time signature.

The piece progresses plainly in two voices.

It passes through G major, A minor, and B minor, concluding in a solemn, low-to-mid range E minor.

The sense of interval and leaps from eighth notes to quarter notes allows one to perceive the musical direction, requiring a continuous and flowing musical progression without stagnation.