20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Performances of Scarlatti's Sonatas for Harpsichord, November 20, 2004
This review is from: Scarlatti: Sonatas for Harpsichord (Audio CD)
Ralph Kirkpatrick was not only a distinguished performer of the harpsichord and teacher (He spent most of his adult life as a professor of music at Yale, after being trained in Europe as well as America.), but also became a superb scholar of Baroque music with his acclaimed biography of Scarlatti. Here in this relatively inexpensive CD are his riveting performances of 21 of Scarlatti's harpsichord sonatas, recorded by Archiv (Deutsche Grammophon) in the mid 1960's. I can't single out one performance as a personal favorite, since all of these are quite good. Thanks to the latest digital 24-bit remastering, the sound quality is superb. Indeed, this fine CD is as excellent as the previously released Archiv CD sets of J. S. Bach's "Well Tempered Clavier", which Kirkpatrick played on the clavichord, not the piano.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
DEFINITIVE, April 18, 2006
This review is from: Scarlatti: Sonatas for Harpsichord (Audio CD)
Ralph Kirkpatrick pretty much brought the music of Domenico Scarlatti back from oblivion. If that was not enough, he practically made Scarlatti's sonati his own by his inspired playing of them. This is the reissue of his 1970 recording for Archiv playing the Reiner Schuetze instrument, with several more sonati than were on the original. Kirkpatrick's playing and the excellence of the remastering make this a real collector's item. There is passion without the saccharine sound some modern performances on piano have added.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
