Sometimes, this is done because he is looking for the more inward timbre of the D string, but other times it seems as if he is avoiding the open A string at all costs. We now know that the open A string, when treated with care, can be a gorgeous sound. There are many suggested uses of the same finger for adjacent notes, resulting in potentially audible slides. Today, assuming someone uses Hugo Becker's fingering, he or she is careful to hide the shifts. But, if one listens to Hugo Becker play, he doesn't even try.
All shifts are audible.
This edition, though interesting from an historical perspective, does not reflect the advances in cello technique or of later research regarding the Baroque dance forms. It is curious that it is still sold today. And then came the great Pablo Casals. What is remarkable about Casals was that, though he still lived in a time when little was yet known about Baroque music or its performance practice, his magnificent musical instincts often led him to play Bach in a manner that has now been proven to be consistent with musicological research. With Pablo Casals, the performance practice of Bach and cello technique would never be the same again.