Product Details

• Actors: J.S. Bach, Anner Bylsma, Keller Quartet, Cello Suites
• Format: Classical, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Euroarts
• DVD Release Date: September 21, 2004
• Run Time: 115 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0002TNGW8
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #247,710 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

The Art of the Fugue is an exceptional performance of one of the most demanding chamber works in history. The Keller Quartet's audio recording of the work is one of the top-sellers in the CD market.

Bach's Cello Suites count among the most popular chamber works of the baroque era. Anner Bylsma, the most distinguished interpreters of Bach's cello music performs on world-famous Stradivarious "Servais".

Recorded in 2000 • Picture Format: 16:9 • Subtitles: GB, D, F
Sound Format: PCM Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Be Warned! This is not Bach alone. It's also György Kurtág!, October 30, 2004

By 

J Scott Morrison (Middlebury VT, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: J.S. Bach - Art of the Fugue / Anner Bylsma, Keller Quartet (DVD)

I'm not at all sure who the audience for this DVD is. The front cover (and the information provided by Amazon) does not make at all clear what the DVD contains, and the back cover does not make it much clearer, without close scrutiny, that this is NOT a complete traversal of the Bach 'Art of the Fugue' played by a string quartet, here the estimable Keller Quartet. It includes, rather, only Contrapuncti 1-4, 6, 9, 11 and 18. And interspersed amongst these Bach fugues are several compositions for quartet or string trio by contemporary Hungarian composer György Kurtág who is a fine composer with enormous craft but who writes ultramodern music; the jarring nature of switching back and forth between Bach and Kurtág was simply more than I could tolerate. (For what it's worth, the booklet notes make grand rationalizations about why they interleaved Bach and Kurtág here. I was not convinced.) The Keller have recorded the complete 'Art of Fugue' on CD and if you are truly interested in their version of this masterpiece, I'd suggest you go there; it is available here at Amazon (go to ASIN B000025HN5) but I don't think it is the same performance as on this DVD. One other caution about the DVD, though--even though they are in a fairly reverberant space, they play, as is often the custom these days, with almost no vibrato.

The DVD's second part (roughly 44 minutes compared to the Keller's 71 minutes) contains the distinguished Dutch cellist playing two of Bach's Cello Suites, No. 1 in G and No. 5 in C Minor. Shot in gloriously beautiful surroundings--a room in the St. Bartholomew Church in Dornheim--this is altogether a more enjoyable experience. Bylsma's tone is soft, rounded and beautifully phrased, graced with just enough vibrato to take away the raspy quality so often heard these days in Baroque music performances. A lovely performance of both suites. I only wish the DVD had contained all six of them. Bylsma has recorded all six on audio CD (here at Amazon as ASIN B0000027TV).

Scott Morrison

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great DVD, but not top performances., November 25, 2005

By 

Paco Yáńez (Santiago de Compostela) - See all my reviews

This review is from: J.S. Bach - Art of the Fugue / Anner Bylsma, Keller Quartet (DVD)

This is, first of all, a very interesting DVD, from the point of view of the works, the performances and the filming part. Anyway, as know some other better interpretations that's why I don't rate it five stars.

The program puts together two wonderful composers from a very different time, but with some links between them, as it's Kurtág admiration for Bach's works. Apart from this, some aspects of the works are close in the soul of the music between both composers. Of course there could be people who don't like about this couple in a DVD, but you have the possibility of running it with Bach's part or Kurtág's one alone, so you don't need to watch or listening the other, but you have the possibility of discovering a great composer if you want.

Keller Quartet play The Art of the Fugue in a very modern way and very influenced by the late romantic tradition, but not in a really baroque style; I really prefer for this work Musika Antiqua Köln because of the instrument combination they chose and for the way they play.

For Kurtág they chose some pieces they know really very well, as you can listen in their recording of some of these pieces for ECM. I have that CD and I can really say I prefer the versions contained in this DVD. Even son, I prefer, in general terms, the Arditti Quartet recordings (Montaigne) for these works; so this could be a second choice.

And what can I say about the master interpretation of Bach's Suites 1 & 5 by Bylsma? A classical of music making the miracle again, in a very appropriated atmosphere in a church, full of light for Suite 1 and dark, like the music is for Suite 5. Outstanding performances, not so strong and fresh like his early ADD recordings for CBS, and in a very close style to the late DDD recording released by Sony Vivarte. Even, I prefer a bit more those Sony DDD performances, with a younger Bylsma.

The sound is very, very good, great DDD recording; and the film is very atmospheric for all the pieces, specially Bylsma's.

Even I know better performances for every work, it's a very serious and well done DVD I think worth for every music lover, and for many people to discover the music of Kurtág, a really master of the XXth music, truth to me.

5.0 out of 5 stars As good as it gets...for 8 contrapuncti, July 1, 2011

By 

whoiskermit (texas, usa) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: J.S. Bach - Art of the Fugue / Anner Bylsma, Keller Quartet (DVD)

Yes, this DVD is marred by Kurtag and the extraneous 2 suites by Bylsma (get the Yang DVD-CDs instead), but the other reviewers fail to tell all. If you (like me) keep searching for the perfect recording of die Kunst der Fuge, then you need to add this DVD to your collection. First, you can rip the Bach and drop the Kurtag. That answers the complaints about interpolating Kurtag. (Actually, the Keller were ahead of their time in this. These days we get Piazzolla interleaved with Vivaldi and what not. Well, times are tough for art music. Times are tough for art. But I digress.) Second, you get coherent performances of 8 contrapuncti. In 1997 (ECM), the Keller recorded the entire Kunst but, against all odds, they adopted an incoherent layout--violin 1, violin 2, cello, viola, ie SABT. For anyone who thinks polyphony is better heard that way than SATB, try it out with a choir. Bach wrote this music on 2 staves (SATB). We need to hear it that way. The Keller often (now, it seems, always) adopt a coherent layout (violin 1, violin 2, viola, cello). But, when we really need to hear the voices, they juggled the positions. The ECM recording is a throw-away, because no one can hear what Bach wrote. Well, in 2000 (for DVD) the Keller adopt a coherent layout in a fine acoustic venue with (what sounds like) a minimal mike setup to record 8 contrapuncti. The Keller rank with the best of the string quartet ensembles from my time (Alban Berg Quartett, Lindsays). You are doubtful? Well, the Keller is still going (with a new cellist, almost 30 years now), so you can try them out for yourself, or you can try the splendid recordings of Tchaikovski and Debussy (from La Chaux-de-Fonds, where the Beaux Art Trio did their best recordings). I admit to preferring the ABQ in Bartók, but the Keller (a Hungarian quartet) is my 2nd choice (and I could live with just the Keller if necessary). Sound (in PCM stereo) is natural and detailed. What a pity that the Keller did not do the whole thing at this time, but the price for 8 contrapuncti is very reasonable. The alternative is (now) the Musica Antiqua Köln on DVD. That recording is generally excellent but has several contrapuncti incoherently recorded (one with the string quartet facing each other as if playing bridge, several with harpsichord with lid up, not off, recorded from the side). Nevertheless, I am very happy to have both DVDs.