Customer Reviews

Johann Sebastian Bach: Die Kunst der Fuge (The Art of the Fugue) - Hespèrion XX / Jordi Savall

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Die Kunst der Fugue, or "The Art of Fugue," has long been one of my favorite works of music, regardless of genre. Whenever I am sick in body or heart or exhausted by all other music, I know I can always turn to this and be made whole.

This is continually surprising and fascinating stuff, rewarding you with new discoveries no matter how many hearings. I've heard quite a few different arrangements of this masterpiece over the past quarter century, including organ, piano, string quartet, full baroque orchestra, and even saxophone quartet. Savall's arrangement for a mixed baroque chamber ensemble of winds and strings offers the most color, while bringing out the individual voices with the highest clarity. Different combinations of instruments are used throughout, which further adds to the interest and variety. And, of course, given Savall's exacting standards, everyone plays beautifully and with soul.

I would listen to this music played on kazoo if nothing else was available, but Savall's way is the most satisfying of the five recordings I own. Heartily recommended to anyone looking for music they will never, ever get tired of.

I picked up this CD after sampling it on a recording station and have been listen to it for years. Tranquil, resonant, intricate and whole. Everyone has a sense of how Bach "should" be performed, and this fits in perfectly with mine.

A small chamber ensemble do justice to the Art of Fugue. Sensitive, powerful, gripping, this one fills your head with Bach and doesn't let up. My only complaint is that I get a little sick of the horn sound. Still, that doesn't make me want to rate it at 4 stars. I go for the emotional feel a record gives me, like the way the Vegh Quartet plays the late Beethoven string quartets. Sounds authentic! Best for last: Savall's performance of the Great Unfinished Fugue will not disappoint anyone. Full recommendation.

This version is done with several different combinations of instruments, and I think that this variety allows for a much more emotional expression than a fixed set. This is not, unfortunately, the complete orchestral version that I have been looking for, but the contrasting voices do work quite well producing a quite pleasing set.

The players play as if they were playing by themselves in their own little world totally unaware of the other parts. The music crawls along with hardly an ounce of inspiration. The total should be more than the sum of the parts. And this isn't. This adds support to my belief that Jordi Savall does not understand Bach or German baroque music in general. After listening to this recording, hearing Moroney's harpsichord recording provided a much needed relief from the hot humid air. But the players individually are excellent.