Bach: The Four Lute Suites [Original recording remastered]

Johann Sebastian Bach (Composer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach
• Audio CD (August 1, 2006)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B000F6YW0S
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #150,512 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still An Important Milestone, December 19, 2007

By 

frankp93 "frankp93" (Connecticut United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Bach: The Four Lute Suites (Audio CD)

Williams' was the first complete recording of the suites I'd ever heard and at that time I was just overwhelmed by the flawless technique. The recording captures a special time for me during my initial "guitar freak phase" and I still enjoy hearing it. But musically, I've heard so many expressive players on different instruments since (not the least of which Casals and Gould) that, as far as Bach on the guitar goes, I now prefer Sharon Isbin's recording of the suites on Virgin, both for her tone and phrasing. And if I'm in a lute-mood, Bream is still my guy. But Williams set the bar with this recording as far as I'm concerned and, for guitarists of all bents, it's a must have.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a must have, October 23, 2008

By 

Walter A. Henderson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bach: The Four Lute Suites (Audio CD)

This is one of the best classical guitar recordings out there and in my opinion one of the great recordings of Bach's music written for solo instrument. A powerful, straight ahead reading of the lute suites. At some point you stop hearing the guitar and start hearing just the music itself. Buy this one.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars just plain great music, December 3, 2010

By 

R. Miller "bald spot" (Toledo, Ohio USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bach: The Four Lute Suites (Audio CD)

This recording had to do some work to win me over, but it did. I'm not fond of transcribed music; I like music with original instrumentation. To me, lute music is for lutes, not guitars; harpsichord is for harpsichords, not pianos. This is the first transcribed album I liked well enough to buy at the first go around. It is simply marvelous; and while there are passages where I would prefer the quickness and sharpness of a lute, I have grown to love this one. I'm not much of a classical guitar fan, either, but I finally realized why this music appeals to me: It is the work of a real composer, with length and depth and variety and purpose.

I have always thought that when J.S. Bach imagined music, he imagined it on a harpsichord. I think this weakens his string music; the endless sawing away of violins on eighth and sixteenth notes--far better suited to a harpsichord--irritates me. But with the guitar or lute, it works much better. And when Bach (through Williams) slows down and lets the melody speak... heavenly.

What Williams has done, that matches the harpsichord paradigm, is play the guitar (as others have noted) with two voices, as with the upper and lower keyboards of a harpsichord. In this I think he has gotten inside JSB's mind, and understands what Bach was doing. I have never heard anyone else pull off the two-voice effect like this. Almost three-dimensional. Marvelous.