Bach

[Padraig]

jayne lee wilson,

I received the CD of Scherchen's Art of Fugue you recommended, a couple of weeks ago, and I have since listened to it sporadically. I must say that I wanted to be bowled over, and some of the pieces have done just that. I don't think I have yet managed to listen to the whole work, what with noticing the different order-of-play, different lengths of pieces, simply hearing arrangements new to my ear. I am using one of my other CDs as a control - Rachel Podger's - and that in itself is using up a lot of my concentration. I'm in deep water anyway, and I think it will be some time before I can give a coherent and concise answer to the question: what do you think of Scherchen's Art of Fugue? In the meantime I look forward to my sessions with the discs. There's a great warmth in the grandeur of the music which I find easy to admire, and I find myself thinking of the refreshing experience of Webern's arrangement of the Ricercar of Bach's Musical Offering, which I also admire.

[gradus]

Not forgetting his Brahms Intermezzi. Surely even sufferers from advanced Gouldphobia can listen to that without putting their hands over their ears.

And how, truly sublime performances of Brahms.

Ref the original posting, the Sarabande from the 6th Partita fairly smoulders in the Anderszewski recording. As for emotional impact there is so much in the choral works for example, the Agnus Dei from the B minor Mass or for organ, the C minor Passacaglia and for sheer joie de vivre how about the F major Toccata played at breakneck speed by Thalben-Ball.