Partitas 4 5 & 6 - 70th Anniversary Edition [Limited Edition, Original recording remastered]

Glenn Gould (Artist), Bach (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 3, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Limited Edition, Original recording remastered
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00006FIAR
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #31,283 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ABSOLUTELY BREATHTAKING!!, May 15, 2006

By 

Sébastien Melmoth (Hôtel d'Alsace, PARIS) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Partitas 4 5 & 6 - 70th Anniversary Edition (Audio CD)

The apogee of this recording is the toccata in e--the first movement of the e minor Partita, S. 830.

This is one of the first recordings GG made for Columbia--immediately after the Goldberg Variations in 1955, and made the same year.

Bach's "toccatas" contained three to five episodes generally following this formula: i) the toccata, proper; ii) an adagio or arietta section; iii) a fugue.

Bach's toccata in e consists of i) toccata, introduction; ii) fugue/aria; iii) toccata, conclusion.

GG was an odd bird: at heart, an ardent Romanticist; on the surface, a sleek Modernist. He does something remarkable with this piece: he infuses an ardently subjective Romanticism with an hard-edged Modernism, turning this antiquated Baroque piece inside out: he makes the upward rushing thrust of the toccata into a pain-filled cry, and the fugue into a studied glacier. With his uncanny timing, GG stretches the piece out to nearly 10 mins: the ending, when the aria theme returns to conjoin the toccata recapitulation--with Gould's exquisite timing and incredible manual dexterity--is absolutely breathtaking. This is incredible art.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Glen Gould at his best, March 8, 2007

By 

Alicia Carpenter "ASCAP awards" (Tx.USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Partitas 4 5 & 6 - 70th Anniversary Edition (Audio CD)

A compelling, even thrilling, performance. Satisfying in technical execution and sound engineering.Worthy of listening to over and over again.

5.0 out of 5 stars "Sound of Sorrow in Partita VI", November 22, 2011

By 

Kohtaro Hayashi "Isayah" (Itoh Japan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Partitas 4 5 & 6 - 70th Anniversary Edition (Audio CD)

In this album, I like Partita No.6. Especially among them, "Sarabande" is extremely attractive one.

Sarabande, performed by Gould, it occurs to me that Bach appeared in this 21st century in disguise himself as a ghost, and he is playing sadly his own music which is tenderly modern but deeply mournful.
From other view: Bringing the Sarabande, Bach took a time travel in the future temporarily when he had composed it.

Indeed, what a delicate, beautiful, and so sorrowful sound there is !

Sound of Sorrow (it takes 3'40'', no repeat by Gould) gives us ultimately, "Time - Space and --Eternity--".

We can also listen to this premonitory sound of Sarabande in the last part of Toccata and through Allemande.
The last music of Partita, in Gigue, Bach awaked and convinced himself that he has returned to his real stage again.

Gould has drawn all of these feeling situations perfectly. (No concern for his voice-humming).

This e-minor Sarabande overwhelms obviously the same e-minor of Mendelssohn Violin Concerto mvt.1st; or Chopin Piano Concerto No.1 mvt.1st; also Chopin Waltz No.14.