10 Bach recordings
A personal listening list - what would you choose?
Martin Cullingford 10:54am GMT 12th January 2011
I thought for my first blog of 2011 I'd present a list of ten Bach recordings which are among my favourites. It's simply a personal list, and on another day I may have chosen a different set of recordings (though some recordings here are unlikely ever not to be in my list), and among some undisputed greats of the catalogue I've also added a few recordings that may be less familiar to some of you. But if anyone wishes to explore them, I can guarantee some wonderful and profound listening.
The Cello Suites Steven Isserlis (Hyperion) Amazon
St Matthew Passion Arnold Schoenberg Choir, Concentus Musicus Wien / Nikolaus Harnoncourt (Teldec) Amazon
Goldberg Variations Richard Egarr (Harmonia Mundi) Amazon
Mass in B Minor The Monteverdi Choir, English Baroque Soloists / John Eliot Gardiner (Archiv) Amazon
Brandenburg Concertos Concerto Italiano / Rinaldo Alessandrini (Naïve) Amazon
David Russell plays Bach (Telarc) Amazon
Partitas Nos 1, 3, 6 Richard Goode Bach (Nonesuch) Amazon
Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin Julia Fischer (Pentatone) Amazon
St John Passion Choir of New College, Oxford / Edward Higginbottom (Naxos) Amazon
Keyboard Concertos Nos 3, 5, 6, 7 Murray Perahia, Academy of St Martin in the Fields (Sony) Amazon
I'd be interested to know if any of these recordings would have made a Bach listening list you might put together? If not, what would?
Comments
In no particular order, but with the (entirely arbitrary) rule that performers can appear only once:
St Matthew Passion - Hermann Scherchen
Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue - Claudio Arrau (Landowska a close second)
Well-Tempered Clavier - Samuel Feinberg
Art of Fugue - Charles Rosen
Brandenburg Concerto No.5 - Wilhelm Furtwangler
English Suite No.3 - Sviatoslav Richter
Toccata, Adagio and Fugue BWV564 - Lionel Rogg (could just as easily have been the Piece d'Orgue BWV572)
Solo Sonata BWV1005 - Heifetz
Orchestral Suite No.4 - Klemperer
B minor Mass - Leonhardt
and of course you need a dedicated Cantata Top 10:
BWV127, 'Herr Jesu Christ' - JE Gardiner (most beautiful soprano aria he wrote)
BWV105, 'Herr, gehe nicht' - Fritz Werner (Herreweghe a close second)
BWV39, 'Brich den Hungrigen' - Herreweghe
BWV70, "Wachet! Betet!' - Felix Prohaska
BWV50 - 'Nun ist das Heil' - Hans-Joachim Rotzsch
BWV140 - 'Wachet auf' - Marcel Couraud
BWV8, 'Liebster Jesu' - Karl Richter
BWV180, 'Schmuecke dich' - Christophe Coin
BWV104, 'Du hirte, Israel' - Vandernoot
BWV101, 'Nimm vor uns' - Suzuki (most bonkers opening chorus)
and how about a Top 10 Bach orchestrations/recompositions?
BWV552 arr Schoenberg
BWV1079 (Ricercar a 6) arr Webern
BWV769 arr Stravinsky
BWV537 arr Elgar
'Bach Measures' - Birtwistle
BWV478 arr Nystedt (Komm, suesser Tod)
BWV582 arr Stokowski
BWV542 arr Mitropoulos
BWV1052 arr Thomas Gabriel Trio
Well-Tempered Clavier arr. John Lewis
Tureck - at Buckley's birthday party.
Landowska - Somebody said 'she plays harpsichord
better than anybody else plays anything.'
Mass in B Minor - Blomstedt with the Gewandhausorchester
Exciting list, as are the others. Thank you. I would like to add a few personal favorites of mine, among them Pieter Wispelwey's staggering recording of the Gamba sonatas with Richard Egarr and Daniel Yeadon (Channel Classics). Also, I am much intrigued by Pierre Hantai's reading of the Variations Goldberg (Mirare), and the lean, energetic version of the Mathew Passion (as they insist on calling it, in close analogy to the German title) by the Dunedin Consort & Players on Linn Records. The Glenn Gould Bach recording I listen to most is, perhaps surprisingly, his beautifully intimate reading of the Two and Three Part Inventions (Sony).
Great list! Mine would share two choices with yours: the Mass in B Minor (Gardiner) and the Keyboard Co 3, 5, 6, 7 (Perahia).
Brandenburg Concertos. Il Giardino Armonico
Orchestral Suites. Suzuki
Cantatas BWV 140/147. Gardiner
Goldberg Variations. Gould (1981)
Cello Suites. Yo-Yo Ma (1985) (ex-aequo with Isserlis!)
Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin. Ehnes
Keyboard Concertos 1, 2, 4. Perahia
Keyboard Concertos 3, 5, 6, 7. Perahia
Inventions, Sinfonias & French Suite # 5. Fellner
Mass in B Minor. Gardiner
An issue with all these recording is the sound quality of the recordings-
It is unfortunate SACD has not done better- It shows you sound quality is not
a primary issue with listeners-
Gardiners recording are good- but have you heard Suzuki's in SACD on an
excellent system-
Also I love Richard Eggrs harpsicord recordings- however they all sound like the recording is in another room compared well done SACD's
Harpsichord Gems, volume 5
J.S.Bach “ENGLISH SUITES” 2 discs
OLGA MARTYNOVA
# CM 0032007
Lots of continued wonderful suggestions - some of which I've heard, others I haven't and now will try to do so. I did enjoy the Ehnes Sonatas and Partitas - other recent recordings of them that I have recently heard and enjoyed for different reasons include John Holloway's (ECM) and Christian Tetzlaff's (Hänssler Classic). Seeing as Arrau was mentioned in one of your lists, I also listened to a set I have of his Goldbergs - very different, of course, from the Egarr harpsichord recording but still enjoyable. And for a very different take, you might also enjoy hearing Teodoro Anzellotti perform the Goldbergs on Accordian (Winter & Winter) - you can hear Rob Cowan talk about it, and listen to an excerpt, on the Critics' Choice podcast from December, in the Gramophone Player. So thank you all - and do feel free to continue the comments, I will keep reading them!
Also, I am much intrigued by Pierre Hantai's reading of the Variations
Goldberg (Mirare), and the lean, energetic version of the Mathew Passion
(as they insist on calling it, in close analogy to the German title) by
the Dunedin Consort & Players on Linn Records. The Glenn Gould Bach
recording I listen to most is, perhaps surprisingly, his beautifully
intimate reading of the Two and Three Part Inventions (Sony).
Greez, bikeparts
I wonder if Bach will be popular on Facebook when it brings in its new music feature?
FanExpertz
Bach is definitely one of my all-time favorite musicians of any genre...he's who (along with Satie) inspired me to start learning piano. artthrob magazine
This is such a great resource that you are providing and you give it away for free. Great post...thanks for sharing the info.... scrabble online
You really showed Christianity. Thank you for your list.
Retirement Planning
I am happy
when reading your blog with updated information! thanks alot and hope that
you will post more site that are related to this site. emergency
food storage
this is very nice article except you all articles is very nice and informative too but if you want to buy electric fence for dogs so visit this website may be it could be help you electirc fence for dogs
Finally I found something useful to me. I have been looking for information on this particular topic for a lot of time now.
I can't believe it is this difficult to find something on the Internet.
I must be looking for the wrong thing or I don't know how to use the computer. Anyway,
did you know that the Ipad is a great tablet from Apple? I have always dreamed of an Ipad Win Een Ipad.
Therefore you should better win some copy.
Your blog is a great one. What really impresses me is that you are correctly mentioned that there are thousands of tools that are available to create a website or launch one but what matters is that you choose the right one, the one that gives you all that is actually needed. quotes about moving on
beautiful little cantata that I first heard live one summer evening in Lapland. I'd include Sigiswald Kuijken's recording not just becuase it would transport me back there New Orleans Audio Visual
Thank you for sharing information and hope to read more.
pest control sydney
<a href="http://www.linkbullets.com/guaranteed-top-ranking-result"rel=dofollow>Guaranteed Top ranking</a>
Hi, thanks to write about this website. In this category this is the most useful website, for search engine optimization services everyone should go for this website.
I think Bach will be popular in Facebook, he's famous enough..
tribute credit card
Very useful posts.. Thanks..
Granite Countertops Baltimore
Thank you for sharing information.
Elektrikli Süpürge Toz Torbası
Granite Countertops Fairfax
The collective failure of the Greek military campaign against the Turkish revolutionaries, coupled with the expulsion of the French military from the region of Cilicia, forced the Allies to abandon the Treaty of Sèvres.
<a href="http://www.granitefairfax.com">Granite Countertops Fairfax</a>
Thanks for another great post.
Everyday Financial Guide
Insurance Blog and More
I like Vivaldi more. Math tutor
Super great article im going to share it
Modèle Lettre
Seeing as Arrau was mentioned in one of your lists, I also listened to a set I have of his Goldbergs - very different, of course, from the Egarr harpsichord recording but still enjoyable. And for a very different take, you might also enjoy hearing Teodoro Anzellotti perform the Goldbergs on Accordian (Winter & Winter).
Fitness Protein
Its
possible that I am wrong, but I heard from my friend that there is geranamine in a supplement called Pump It used for hair. He said that he had bought two brands which
both had geranamine as an active ingredient.