Bach: Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I [Original recording remastered]

Johann Sebastian Bach (Composer), Sviatoslav Richter (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Sviatoslav Richter
• Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach
• Audio CD (October 12, 2004)
• SPARS Code: ADD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: RCA
• ASIN: B0002VYDY6
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #117,391 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #82 in Music > Classical > Forms & Genres > Improvisation

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still Unsurpassed Awe-inspring Bach!, December 2, 2007

By 

Scriabinmahler (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bach: Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I (Audio CD)

Richter's RCA recording of Well-Tempered Klavier still remains as one of the most awe-inspring recording in his entire discography, and no other pianists can match the depth and the intense beauty Richter captures. (Recently I listened to Angela Hewitt's live performance of the work and was amazed by the supefaciality of her playing. More amazing was the fact that critics and audience were ecstatic in praising her performance!)

Check out equally stunning Richter's 60s recording of the Book 1 (originally issued by Russia Revelation / Richter did not record Book 2 at the time, what a shame!), now available from a Russian label called Venezia.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unmissable, but please invest in the Eurodisc CDs, not the mp3s!, August 26, 2010

By 

12_tone_lizzie (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bach: Well-Tempered Clavier Book I (MP3 Download)

Foolish hyperbole perhaps, but currently it's my sincere opinion that this the greatest ever recording of the greatest ever composition. You simply must hear it. I have nothing else to say about the music or Richter's playing, but please be aware of sound quality issues. I bought the mp3 downloads of Book 1, and was so bowled over by the performance that I immediately bought the Eurodisc CDs of Book 2. This came as a shock, as the Book 2 CDs have far better sound quality than the Book 1 downloads. So I invested in the Eurodisc CDs of Book 1 too... and boy was it worth it. Even ripped to mp3 and transferred to my iPod, the tracks from the CDs are considerably better than the mp3 downloads. I'm frankly puzzled: the stereo original is strangely erratic for a 1970s taping made in the West, quality varying from one track to another and the worst having a gritty, crumbly quality. (Sadly the transcendental Prelude 1 Book 1 is one of these.) Believe me, in this recording if in no other, the margin by which the CDs outscore the downloads is well worth the substantially greater cost and the delay in delivery time.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my first Bachs, August 28, 2010

By 

Coach of Alva - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bach: Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I (Audio CD)

This was one of the first recordings of Bach that I purchased and the first performance of this work that I heard. I own other recordings of this work now, including the ones by Gould and Landowska, but I still have a soft spot for this. Richter saw the work mainly as a thing of beauty and played it that way, almost being dainty at times.