Bach: Six Unaccompanied Cello Suites

Yo-Yo Ma (Performer), Johann Sebastian Bach (Composer)

Product Details

• Performer: Yo-Yo Ma
• Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach
• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0000025QM
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,399 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #7 in	Music > Classical > Featured Performers, A-Z > ( M ) > Ma, Yo-Yo
  #14 in	Music > Classical > Instruments > Strings > Cello
  #34 in	Music > Classical > Featured Composers, A-Z > ( B ) > Bach, Johann Sebastian

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This is Yo-Yo Ma's first recording of Bach's Cello Suites, digitally recorded in 1983 and first issued on LP. He has since made a second recording of the Suites in 1998, taken from the soundtrack of a video series, so it's interesting that the earlier set remains available. If you've been lucky enough to hear Ma play this music in concert, you'll realize that neither set represents his Bach at its best. This rendition is generally quite straightforward, beautifully played and musically sound but sometimes not very emotional. The second set is more expressive but frequently seems self-conscious. Either of these recordings is a worthy representation of Bach's superb music, but neither attains the mature eloquence of Starker's final recording, a level Ma will probably reach himself in his third recording. --Leslie Gerber

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Straightforward but soulful, June 9, 2000

By	David C. Moses (Taipei, Taiwan) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I own three popular recordings of the Bach cello suites and can check out two others from a local library. But this recording is by far the one that I listen to most often. One reason has to be the quality of the recording, which I think is generally acknowledged. But more important are Ma's impeccable technique and good musical taste: he plays what Bach wrote, and plays it more clearly and with less unnecessary embellishment than anyone else I have heard. (Call me a purist if you want to, but in my opinion piling on the rubato does not convert the cello suites into a mystical experience.)

When I applaud Ma's technique and say that he plays what Bach wrote, I am not implying that he plays mechanically -- not at all. He plays quite soulfully in my opinion. For example, he brings the Gigue of Suite 1 to life as Casals and Starker, at least, do not. He does that with dynamic variation, and by controlling the tone of his cello, mixing sweet phrases with scratchy ones. I wish that Gigue were included in Amazon's samples, as it would put to rest any charges of mechanical playing.

One customer reviewer said that if the name Ma were taken off the package, all that would remain would be another mediocre rendition of Bach's cello suites. I disagree strongly. I bought the recording on a friend's recommendation, and was not particularly a Ma fan at that time. It is this recording that made me a Ma fan.

Of course, my opinion about this recording is not intended to take away from other great performances. And I haven't heard the later Ma recording yet; maybe it is even better. But as far as I'm concerned, Ma's great technique and straightforward yet soulful approach to the suites should allow this recording to stand proudly among the best of them.

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not the best recordings of this music, April 11, 1999

By A Customer

In this repertoire Fournier and Casals are both better; Rostropovich is best. To be fair, Ma is a world-class cellist who has produced some fine recordings. But here the young Ma must compete with masters, and these performances, made early in Ma's career, come up short. (A Yo-Yo Ma acolyte may, however, find much to enjoy in the viridity Ma's playing.) If you want another opinion, check Gramaphone Magazine's reviews online. Or buy all of these recordings as I have and compare for yourself.

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sets a new performance standard, May 23, 2004

By	Adam Chen (Mercer Island, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

While I have heard only one other piece played in a different style for whom I can compare to, I must admit that I believe this is an almost perfect rendition of all Bach's Cello Suites. I wonder where any criticism can come in, except to say that maybe his breathing is annoying. But who can stop their breath? Especially when you need to put so much heart into this beautiful thing... Perhaps it's disappointing to note that these musical melodies will activate not just your pleasure centers, but also the faces you take when you think. This will change a dinner's mood to philosophical and otherwise. You'll be forced--that's the key ingredient to good music--to pay attention. You can't walk around, you must sit, and, listen.

There is no other way to say this: the performance is flawless. It has no style. He has become a perfect melody of nothing, allowing the full style of Bach himself to come through, throwing away his ego's tendency to improvise. Noting that the pieces were meant to be played in full, these are the only cello recordings I believe that can be viewed, heard, smelt, felt, and understood through the whole recording. Other artists playing these works manage to gather up large emotional swells within us, but only for the beginning five minutes or so. Or so the first minute shows us, until we get bored and stop the music. These are pure rhythm-meditations, designed to make us think. Not for relaxation, but for peace.