Goldberg

Bach's monumental Goldberg Variations stand alone in the piano literature as a work of unique artistry and brilliance. Lang Lang first began exploring this masterpiece more than 20 years ago and presents this record as the outcome of a long personal and emotional journey. Marking a new stage in Lang Lang's artistic development, it is the project of a lifetime. Alongside a studio recording is a contrasting performance, a single take from a recital in Leipzig's iconic St Thomas Church, where Bach worked and is now buried. The heart of this project is the deluxe edition - a unique, word-first offering with simultaneous studio & live recording.

Glenn Gould's recording debut in 1955 of Bach's Goldberg Variations took the world by storm. His decidedly un-Romantic view, absolute technical skill, startling lucidity, and right-on rhythmic changes, combined with his eccentricities–audible humming, sometimes outrageously fast tempi–made him an instantly legendary pianist and elucidated Bach's music in a whole new way. Gould's final recording, 26 years later, was also of the Goldbergs. It's a more relaxed, sometimes much slower, more inward reading (although still very much his own, complete with oddly ferocious attacks and accents), in which he offers repeats of the first half of 15 of the Variations. Both performances are glorious, each in its own way, and this luxurious new set of three CDs is entertaining, a joy to hear, and revelatory; it belongs in any music lover's collection. The third CD is devoted to outtakes and chatter from recording sessions. At one point, Gould improvises "God Save the King" and exhibits how it turns into "The Star-Spangled Banner." And a long interview with critic Tim Page offers great insight into Gould's weird humor and unique outlook. A must-have collection.

Bach's monumental Goldberg Variations stand alone in the piano literature as a work of unique artistry and brilliance. Lang Lang first began exploring this masterpiece more than 20 years ago and presents this record as the outcome of a long personal and emotional journey. Marking a new stage in Lang Lang's artistic development, it is the project of a lifetime. Alongside a studio recording is a contrasting performance, a single take from a recital in Leipzig's iconic St Thomas Church, where Bach worked and is now buried. The heart of this project is the deluxe edition - a unique, word-first offering with simultaneous studio & live recording.

PHOENIX performs Bach's Goldberg Variations in an outstanding arrangement for strings and continuo made by conductor Bernard Labadie.

Die Goldberg-Variationen, das wohl bekannteste Werk für Tasteninstrumente von Johann Sebastian Bach, stellen einen Höhepunkt barocker Variationskunst dar. Über eine kunstvoll verzierte barocke Arie entfaltet Bach ein Wunderwerk von 30 Variationen - heitere und besinnliche, kantable und fugierte, tänzerische sowie virtuose. Jetzt erscheint dieses Werk in einer neuen, einzigartigen Fassung: Der Komponist Heribert Breuer hat eine kammermusikalische Bearbeitung für Septett geschaffen. Die Besetzung teilt sich in zwei Trios (Streich- und Bläser-Trio) auf, wobei in deren Mitte eine Harfe thront. Klanglich entfaltet sich hierbei ein neues musikalisches Erlebnis, wobei eine eindrucksvolle Transparenz sowie musikalische Farbigkeit entsteht. Im Verlauf des Variationszyklus wird die Einteilung in Bläser- und Streichtrio kompositorisch unterbrochen, sodass sich neue interessante Duo-Konstellationen, wie etwa Flöte und Harfe, ergeben können. Die erste Aufnahme der neuen Fassung entstand mit dem Goldberg-Septett unter Leitung von Heribert Breuer selbst. Bachs geniales Werk wird auf diesem Doppel-Album von ausgewählten Essays von Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) ergänzt, welche vom bekannten deutschen Schauspieler Ulrich Noethen gelesen werden.

“Although it is certainly part of a performer’s task both to nurture a special relationship with a work and to give the public a chance to enjoy it, the first thing that you need to do is to separate the work from its history.”