Customer Reviews

A State of Wonder: The Complete Goldberg Variations (1955 & 1981)

5 star:		(60)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

These two performances of the Goldberg Variations have been reissued so many times. But what makes this new reissue stand out is the bonus interview & outtakes of the 1955 recording sessions, plus all brand new remastered sound using Direct Stream Digital technology, with 2.83 MHz sampling frequency yielding high resolution results on standard CD.
I was a little hesitant to purchase this set at first because I already own both versions of these piece. But after I bought and listened to it, I must say I don't regret it at all.
In 1981, Gould recorded his latest thoughts on the Goldberg Variations. Some people expressed the opinion then that the digital Lp & CD sound was unkindly analytical, lacking timbre, causing the notes to appear disconnected from each other.
Twenty years have passed since Gould's untimely death and to honour him and set the record straight, Sony Music returned to the analogue master tapes made at the same session. In the early 1980's, digital technology was in its infancy and technically imperfect. By contrast, analog technology had reached its peak. As a precaution of early digital imperfection, what many recording companies did, including Sony Music, was running two recording medium simultaneously side-by-side at the recording session and mark analog version as "safety master" in case there's anything wrong with the digital masters. From the technical notes in the booklet of this CD set, when Sony gave the green light to this "State of wonder" project, Sony A&R, reissue producer and two sound engineers as well as a project adviser, Mr. Tim page, made a Digital vs. Analog comparison and they found that the analog safety master has much superior sound that no one had ever heard before. Then the vote was unanimous to reissue the 1981 version using the analog safety master, instead of digital, for the first time after 21 years it was recorded. This analog safety master was unedited, untouched, so they had to acquire the original score marked by Glenn Gould & original records producer, then they edited the tapes to exactly duplicate the sequences chosen for the original release by Glenn himself.
The difference of sound quality is not superficial. Even untrained ears can notice it. Now, there are the sonorities so painfully absent before, providing the necessary connection between the notes. This performance now sings. Well, so does Gould but that becomes an attraction, not a distraction.
The third disc had Gould chatting with Tim Page about the two recordings with illustrations. Also, the never before released 1955 outtakes of Goldbergs' session.
This package is no mere re-exploitation of existing recordings. It does honour to Glenn Gould.

Two decades after his death, Glenn Gould's art remains undiminished in stature, as lustrous and diamond-hard as his carefully sculpted recorded interpretations. This CD brings together in one deluxe package his two recorded performances of Bach's Goldberg variations, the first of which shot him to immediate, lasting, and deserved prominence on the musical scene. Even now, close to five decades after its release, the clarity, brilliant technique and sheer energy Gould brings to Bach in this 1955 performance takes one's breath away. Historically accurate performance it is not, but something more important--a rendition that brings the music back to life, fresh and new.

The later, valedictory recording, released just before Gould died of a stroke in 1982, makes a fascinating contrast, generally slower and more contemplative (with more repeats taken, though not all), and oddly demarcated inner voices and accentuations that nevertheless illuminate the complexities of Bach's music in a way perhaps no one has done before or since. The sound, remastered from analogue tapes made at the time of the original digital recording, is even better than in the original release

There is a third disc that includes an "interview," carefully scripted, with Gould by the critic Tim Page. It is not surprising that someone as obsessed with the process of producing the perfect musical recording as Gould was would have wanted to exercise the same control over a verbal discussion as well! As a bonus there are also outtakes from the 1955 recording sessions. The packaging includes numerous photographs of the pianist in various stages of his life, as well as essays by Gould, Page, and others. This is an album that should be in every pianist's, piano aficionado's, and music lover's collection. Bravo!

As a pianist and an avid fan of Glenn Gould. I have never heard his Goldberg Variations sound so wonderful, pure and fresh as this newly remastered 3CD set. This is a no brainer! I used to dislike the 1981 version for its slow tempi and very hash,brittle and congest sound of early, primitive, Digital Recording. Luckily, this time, Sony went back to the original analog master which was recorded simultaneously, as a pre- caution, at the session. In 1981, analog technology was at its peak. With properly adjusted and aligned, the analog has, surprisingly, far better fidelity than early digital technology. Now, you can hear the 1981 version in its full rich sound, with no hint of early digital nasties. It has changed my old opinion toward Gould's 1981 version, like a new discovery. Now, I love both version in a different way. Thanks for this exceptional 3 CD set. Bravo!

Already owning both versions of this piece, I was somewhat reluctant to purchase it again, fearing that this was just another marketing ploy to part me from my hard-earned cash. That said, it is anything but. This newly re-mastered version of the 1981 version is clearly superior. The highlight of this set, however, is the third interview disk, which provides illuminating information on how Gould approaches the Goldberg Variations. A must have.

Sony Music has done a marvelous job for this 3 CD set. The 1955 & 1981 Goldberg Variations never sounded better. On CD1 (1955 version), the sound is much improved than the earlier "Glenn Gould Edition CD" originally released in early 1990's. Now, there's no sense of congestion & hashness on the piano sound. You can hear the inner details and sense of freedom and breath of notes so clearly on this new CD. No fake noise reduction or souped up sound like what you can find in the 1990's Glenn Gould Edition remastered. Everything just sounds right for the first time on "State of Wonder" CD.
The CD2 (1981 version) is a revelation. Compared the Glenn Gould Edition CD with this newly remastered is like a night and day! Suddently, there's the light shines through every notes of this 1981 recording. It sings so beautifully on this new CD!
On CD3, a wonderful (scripted)interview and the outtakes of 1955 Goldberg Variations with same sonic treatment.
In summary, I'm very happy I bought this wonderful "State of Wonder" 3CD set although I also own the Glenn Gould Edition CDs that released 10 years ago. Now, I'm planning to visit used CD stores and ask if they want my older remastered Glenn Gould Edition CDs. I hope they do!

I recently picked up a large collection of Gould recordings on CD including this Goldberg set and although I've been a serious Classical listener for years I'd never really had the chance to sit down and evaluate the legendary Glenn Gould.

The result is that I really don't care if this is "correct" Bach or not. I really don't even care if this is "Classical" music. It's simply great music played brilliantly. The humming doesn't bother me at all; I listen to plenty of jazz and I'm comfortable with performers acting and sounding like deeply involved human beings when playing music they love. This lack of emotion some complain about just isn't apparent--Gould was obviously working a magical balancing act, revealing the emotion while simultaneously revealing the genius of the craft. The two aspects are tied together anyway.

I can't believe some people are still complaining about these wonderful recordings.

This particular version of JS Bach's "Goldberg" Variations really should require no review at all; anyone even remotely interested in this kind of music should already know it. It is J.S. Bach -- the undisputed all time master of the contrapuntal fugue form -- at the peak of his compositional skills, as interpreted by Glenn Gould - a keyboard genius without parallel - perhaps the greatest classical piano virtuoso in the history of the human race.

Track for track what you have here is quite literally the most thrilling and intricate Baroque era single clavinette music ever written. In fact it is generally understood that the only reason the Goldberg Variations are not heard as often as Bach's signature work, the far more famous "Well Tempered Clavinette" collection, is simply because there are so few people around with the level of skill necessary to perform them.

Give extremely high marks to Gould then, because this recording is replete with rivers of sizzling notes moving flawlessly in all directions at blinding speeds...speeds at times too hard to even process through the human ear much less play! One can almost picture him at the keyboard, eyes closed, head cocked and bowed way over, both hands "flying" up and down the keyboard performing their simultaneously complex scales and counter-scales with an astonishing amount of intensity and almost un-human, precision-like perfection.

There are 30 Goldberg variations (not counting the two arias at the open and close which are illustrative), each variant containing between two and four voices, and each characterized by canons and other repeated sections, but the really interesting twist on this production is that you get 2 recordings of the same set of variations; one is Gould in his brilliant 1955 recording debut- the one that created the sensation which landed him on the cover of Time magazine at the time, and the second with Gould in 1981 just days before he died, back in the studio performing the same set in the same exact order.

Even the fact that much of this paricular collection is done on old analogue recording gear (circa 1955) adds to its pure delight, with tape giving back the true depth, clear spatial definition, and good old stereo separation taken away in this less personal "digital" era in which we currently live and record.

So it all makes for an amazing experience, truly so. I say: BUY IT, BUY IT, BUY IT--- even if you're low on money--buy it! Even if you're "Baroque"--buy it!

It's a matter of preference as to which 20th-century pianist made the most persuasive case for playing Bach on the piano. Rosalyn Tureck comes to mind, as do Murray Perahia and Andras Schiff, and certainly Busoni if you're thinking of transcriptions rather than recordings. But Glenn Gould, with his golden tone and flawless if eccentric technique, is the Bach pianist who remains most prominent in the public mind, even more than 20 years after his death. No Bach work demonstrated Gould's artistry to greater advantage than The Goldberg Variations, and having both his 1955 and 1981 versions in a single package is a delight. The 1955 version, recorded when he was only 23, is a masterpiece of effervescent, fleet-fingered joy in the making of music; the 1981 version, not surprisingly, is more deliberative, more cognizant of the music's inner voices. Personally, I prefer the 1955 version, for the same reasons that I prefer champagne to old-growth cabernet. But both are a must for any serious classical music CD collection.

When Sony bought Columbia, they began reissuing Glenn Gould albums, with new packaging and audio mastering. I think they realized early on that Gould fans are often merciless perfectionists, and vainly view their music collections more as "archives" than as "yonder pile," and hence have no tolerance for hack jobs. These are people, after all, who buy classical music for its own sake, and not as functional generic background music or "relaxation." Thus, there is a rigorous audio standard Sony tries to hold itself to, as well as to a historical standard.

STATE OF WONDER is probably the ultimate expression of this policy. It was simply a very good idea to devote a single package to these two recordings of the Goldberg Variations. The 1955 recording which was Gould's first album, and the 1981 recording, which was his last. The third CD consists of a fascinating and strange Canadian Broadcast Co. interview (Sony has also acquired basically any audio or visual recording of Gould) shortly before his 1981 death, as well as some outtakes from the 1955 sessions. The interview ranges all over, including a really weird parody of a non-existent English actor that you have to hear to believe. Gould and the interviewer discuss many of the variations in-depth; any Bach student will be interested in hearing it.

Gould was a ruthless critic of the '55 recording, as you'll hear in the interview, and the difference between the two recordings is IMMEDIATELY evident with his tempo in the Aria. In the '81 recording, he more violently plunges into the 1st Variation, which is startling, especially after the much slower tempo.

A brief essay from the interviewer is included in the booklet, as is Gould's perspicacious liner notes from the 1955. He talked the way he wrote, eloquently wrapped up in the precision of his art and not really giving a damn what anyone else thought. Also, a brief explication of the recording and remastering technology will be helpful to the tech-philes.

(Several years ago I bought Gould's recording of the Mozart sonatas, and totally regretted it. They're awful; played indifferently. So it was funny to hear in the interview Gould panning his own recording and laughingly talking about detesting Mozart.)

This is vital for any collector of Gould's work, and anyone who wants to hear the Goldberg Variations cannot possibly go wrong with Gould's work.

After having roamed the earth for a few decades and sampled what I could of its delights, I must declare Gould's performances of Bach's "Goldberg Variations" (specifically, this 3-CD set) to be, in the final analysis, one of the 3 or 4 most heartbreaking and inexpressibly lovely things I have ever encountered.

Here's the story, though I'm no expert:

In the mid-1950's, Glenn Gould was a dorky and unknown Canadian pianist who recorded these pieces, until then considered too "cerebral" to have a very wide audience.

But the suprising grace and remarkable clarity of the performances shot Gould to superstardom, where, regrettably, he spent his tenure as a fey and off-putting crank.

Many years later, saddened and deeply bruised by life, Gould recorded the exact same pieces again, and they sounded completely different! Instead of being bright and vivacious, they were now somber and withdrawn.

And then, mere days after recording the second version, Gould was gone from the earth.

You are getting 3 CD's: the first is the 1955 recordings, the second is the 1981 recordings, and the third is a kind of interview disk done with Gould days before his death in which the differences are dwelt upon.

Nothing is perfect, however, and there are things that bother me even with these divine CDs.

For example, the sick and eccentric Gould has a habit of humming audibly and knocking the piano as he played. Endearing? Get ready for it in any case.

Also, the technical laying-out of the CDs could have been brought off more cunningly. For example, Gould had a way of launching from one piece to the next without much of a pause. Those who laid out the tracks for the CDs would have been wiser to make each CD one track, that it may not be interrupted. But as it is, if you rip the CD's to your computer or iPod, this will be a constant annoyance, as the tracks have to momentarily reorient to refresh themselves. (If you know what I'm talking about, make sure you rip the tracks as one giant track, and that should take care of the problem.)

Alas! I fear the earth holds few such treasures.