Customer Reviews

Bach: Concertos for Piano and Orchestra Nos. 1-5 & 7 (The Glenn Gould Edition)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
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My idea of how to spend a perfect rainy day indoors is to grab a few books and put lots of Bach on the CD player. The first things I'd listen to are the Concertos for Keyboard/Clavier and Strings. There is nothing quite like the intense joy and feeling of well being that these miraculous concertos produce. Glenn Gould's muscular performances could not be bettered--by anyone. I am particularly fond of the fact that he plays a modern piano rather than the harpsichord of which I feel "a little goes a long, long way."

Gould is the best. Afer listening to many excellent recordings of the BWV 1052 concerto--including very good ones in period instruments by Pinnock & The English Concert, Koopman & the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, etc.--I have to say that this is absolutely the best recording of that concert in existence. The recording of the BWV 1055 is one of the most moving I've ever heard. Gould is absolutely amazing. His mastery over the piano is the stuff of legend, and there's something to be said about the use of the piano for interpreting these concerts. As much as I like the use of period instruments...the depth of expression you can achieve with the piano has no comparison. And in the hands of Gould, you will not be dissapointed.

For all of Gould's eccentricities, these are without question the finest versions of Bach's concertos one could ask for. Of course, if you are a period instrument fan, you would avoid this anyway. Authenticity not withstanding, Gould brings to these works a penetrating sense of understanding, lyricysm and startling keyboard mastery. There are many other fine versions in the catalog, such as Perahia, but if want to hear Bach done to perfection, Gould is your man.

This is a superlative recording of one of the most famous pieces by Kapellmeister Johann Sebastian Bach played by the best Bach interpreter, Mr. Glenn Gould. I value this recording so much that I often find myself avoiding listening to it too much because this recording is like a beautiful sunset, which should only be fully enjoyed when all the conditions are ideal. It is not a background music. I have owned this recording for many years, but I decided that I have no choice but to write a review now after reading a very gratuitous and childish review below by Mr. Bruno. While I do not care about the provincialism of others, I was very worried that some novices reading that review might be mislead and coerced away from this most delightful recording and miss the experience of a lifetime.

For those that do not know, Glenn Gould is considered to be the best Bach interpreter of this century by the vast majority of non-professional listeners and professional artists. Gould's performances have become a standard; so much so that any new Bach performance on a piano is almost immediately compared to Gould. True, there are some critics who believe that Gould uses too much staccato in some of Bach's compositions, but nevertheless, if we remember that most of these pieces Bach had composed for a harpsichord, which is a staccato instrument by nature, we can understand why Gould would select such a radical approach.

Bach's fugues are very complex and often the performer is faced with a challenge to communicate three, four, or even more melodies simultaneously. A romantic, legato performance hopelessly mixes all the notes together drowning any possibility of expressing all these melodies at the same time - at best, some of the melodies go into the background, e.g., the left hand notes, while other melodies, like the notes for the right hand, come to the surface. Only a very scrupulous listening can reveal these melodies buried in the background. What makes so many people to fall in love with Glenn Gould is his uncanny ability to not only express all the melodies distinctly at the same time, but also to bring his left and right hand notes together into a mellifluous, sometimes tempestuous, freely flowing melody. Everything is right there for you to listen to.

Even if you are one of those harsh critics who absolutely cannot accept a staccato performance, I am sure that you will still like this performance because the recording flows so well that one can't argue that Glenn uses too much staccato. I am not a listener who is limited only to Gould. I embrace many different styles of performances simply because no one interpretation is the "only way." If you are very interested to hear how else these compositions can be performed, such as more romantically, I recommend you listen to these same compositions played by Sviatoslav Richter, Murray Perahia, and Gustav Leonhardt (this is a harpsichord version). All three do an excellent job. You will also have the opportunity to compare these performances to Glenn Gould's interpretation. Additionally, I would recommend that you hear these concertos being performed on a violin (by Rachel Podger or Itzhak Perlman) and organ (by Karl Richter). After so many years and so many different recordings I have realized that Gould's performance is the absolute best. It doesn't mean there aren't other excellent recordings; it means that Glenn adds something extra to the performance that somehow when you combine those extra features with the genius of Johann Sebastian Bach, you suddenly seem to reinvent one of the greatest works of arts of the Western Civilization.

This recording is indeed breathtaking. I have read several books on Bach's works and his biography and I have to say that his genius is divine, yet I am not even religious! Mozart and Beethoven, among numerous other composers, have revered Bach and learned from him as well. At least for me, there has never been any composer as powerful as Herr Bach. If you are new to Bach, this recording is a great starting point. Make sure that you continue your reveling odyssey and listen to Bach's other greatest works - Goldberg Variations (Gould, 1955 and 1981), Violin Concertos (Podger), The Art of Fugue (Gould, Sokolov, or Emerson Quartet), Brandenburg Concertos (Alessandrini or Pinnock), Well-Tempered Klavier (Gould, Richter), and many more. If you have any questions about Bach and his performances, feel free to contact me (ekhekoyan at yahoo.com).

Being a great fan of Bach and Gould I was delighted when I found this cd conducted by Leonard Bernstein. Bach is my favourite composer, Gould is among my favourite pianists and Bernstein is my favourite conductor, so my expectations for this record were huge. I'm glad to say that I wasn't dissapointed although the sound quality isn't the best at times. The performance is absolutely magical and I'm surprised that no one has reviewed this cd yet. No need to go into detail about the music, but if you like Bach you will love this recording.

I guess it's pointless to describe Glenn Gould. It has been done thousands of times and my opinion wouldn't chance much anyway. I don't like his Mozart Sonatas, infact, anything he has done that isn't Bach. When it comes to Bach, however, he had a unique gift. He often rushes through recordings, but on this record he play's as if Bach himself had tought him. The first concerto has always been one of my favourite and Goulds version is by far the best I've hear. I would recommend this record to all Bach followers and to anyone who appreciates pure genius. If you want to know more about Gould just keep looking on Amazon.com there's tons of information and that's why I haven't described his technique. Hope it's ok.

There's not much I can add to comments from other people, but I still have to write a few words about these recordings - the feelings they give are too strong to keep silince. They're just perfect.

Glenn Gould is one of the most controversial pianists ever ... some people love him ,some hate him ,but they all agree that he is a true bravura player and a serious virtuoso on the piano .
When it comes to bach we immediately recall the famous saying : Bach is the mathematician of music , and Gould's famous ( mechanical ) technique on the piano really sets us in the mood for bach ... i dont believe that J.S himself would have played those pieces better than Gould ...

I have always been fond of the piano concertos ,and i listened to them performed by multiple artists ,but Gould is the maestro undebatably .

I would also recommend Bach's partitas by Gould too ...

Enjoy

There's a reason that people all over the world love Gould and praise him as the greatest interpreter of Bach's work; quite simply, he is. And for anyone who reads the previous negative review and takes it seriously, please consider that Amazon doesn't advocate censorship, but in all probability just deletes idiotic reviews.

I started listening to Glenn Gould almost 50 years ago, and have always
admired the precision with which he played. It evokes very refined
emotions and clarity of thought, as I think Bach intended.