Bach Clavier-Übung I and II
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Johann Sebastian Bach, Andreas Staier
Label: Deutsche Harmonia Mundi
Magazine Review Date: 2/1995
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 184
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: 05472 77306-2
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| (6) Partitas |
Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer
Andreas Staier, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer |
| Concerto in the Italian style, 'Italian Concerto' |
Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer
Andreas Staier, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer |
| Overture (Partita) in the French style |
Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer
Andreas Staier, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer |
Author: Jonathan Freeman-Attwood
The gradual publication of Clavier-Ubung 1 from 1726-31 was doubtless one of Bach's most satisfying professional experiences to date; only two miscellaneous cantatas (of which only No. 71 survives) from his Muhlhausen days had been published before that time. One can imagine, then, the feeling of pride and prestige which accompanied the preparation of the six Partitas for a composer in his forties anxious to extend his reputation beyond his local liturgical duties. Consequently, these works exhibit a considered eloquence borne of profound reflection on genre and gesture. On which level these wonderfully rich pieces speak to us is, of course, largely in the hands of the performer: over the last 18 months we have had persuasive accounts from Christophe Rousset and Ketil Haugsand and now the versatile Andreas Staier joins the pack in an increasingly competitive field. I first heard Staier in a disc of variations and sonatas by Haydn (Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, 2/94) and admired him instantly for the vivacity and character he brings to his playing. He is a performer with a keen understanding of decorum though it is the darkly imbued suites where I find him especially penetrating. Just as I remember in Haydn's F minor Variations, he takes a stark and disturbing view of the C minor Partita. The opening is remarkably powerful and rhetorical but the way he juxtaposes this with an almost ironically free-flowing andante before setting into an exacting and exhilarating fugato is musicianship of real conviction and flair (note a particularly fine Partita No. 5). Staier's impeccable digital facility and steadiness is often at the root of the colourful devices which he imparts to the A minor Partita with an energetic, almost Scarlattian Burlesca and before that a rounded and genial Sarabande, and finally a dreamy Gigue—a rare thing indeed!
What more could one want from this music? Often, as suggested above, not much. But my acquaintance with the more radical and 'off piste' playing of Ketil Haugsand keeps, in my view, Staier's and Rousset's distinguished achievements in check. Neither Staier nor Haugsand quite gets to grips with the B flat Partita, though even here I am entranced by the Norwegian's unpredictable but profoundly musical explorations. Whilst Staier produces a performance of classically balanced dimensions and perfectly formed sentences (despite an under-nourished Minuet), Haugsand imposes himself with full-blooded spontaneity and an untethered but noble spirit, occasionally wrong-footing the listener but revealing an unequivocal passion and deeply poetic involvement (compare the Minuets in both versions). Staier in Partita No. 4 is certainly more rounded at the edges, and he shapes the overall suite to perfection, though for a player of such bravura, he is at times strangely conservative in the improvisational aspects of this music, manipulating the beat in a comparatively predictable fashion. He is short-breathed in some of the formalized dances (for example the Allemandes) where Haugsand is far more elegiac and the latter's Courantes freely trip out in long big-hearted paragraphs. Impetuosity and disencumbered emotional boundaries can bring serious detractors (see LS's review in 1/95), and there are moments where Staier's more finely honed and regulated approach will win many friends whilst Haugsand's will perhaps be considered too individual (though the harpsichord sonority welcomes all ye who are unsure of its most beautiful properties). Rousset is exceptional in the First Partita, and of course in others too, though he does not, for me, deliver the emotional range which these pieces afford in the hands of either Haugsand or Staier.
Amidst personal preferences, let's make no mistake: Staier's performances are still in the very top bracket, always thought-provoking and clearly argued, with moments of matchlessly vital and exquisite playing (the Gigue of the G major Partita, for instance). Each of these versions has its moments of unique magic and there is no question that these three are the leaders in the present field. Staier's set also includes Part Two of theClavier-Ubung, an extra disc with the Italian Concerto and the B minor Overture in the French style, both beautifully played. Here, as elsewhere, his Keith Hill harpsichord after German examples gives a clearly defined attack and a focus which can have you on the edge of your seat. An impressive release.'
What more could one want from this music? Often, as suggested above, not much. But my acquaintance with the more radical and 'off piste' playing of Ketil Haugsand keeps, in my view, Staier's and Rousset's distinguished achievements in check. Neither Staier nor Haugsand quite gets to grips with the B flat Partita, though even here I am entranced by the Norwegian's unpredictable but profoundly musical explorations. Whilst Staier produces a performance of classically balanced dimensions and perfectly formed sentences (despite an under-nourished Minuet), Haugsand imposes himself with full-blooded spontaneity and an untethered but noble spirit, occasionally wrong-footing the listener but revealing an unequivocal passion and deeply poetic involvement (compare the Minuets in both versions). Staier in Partita No. 4 is certainly more rounded at the edges, and he shapes the overall suite to perfection, though for a player of such bravura, he is at times strangely conservative in the improvisational aspects of this music, manipulating the beat in a comparatively predictable fashion. He is short-breathed in some of the formalized dances (for example the Allemandes) where Haugsand is far more elegiac and the latter's Courantes freely trip out in long big-hearted paragraphs. Impetuosity and disencumbered emotional boundaries can bring serious detractors (see LS's review in 1/95), and there are moments where Staier's more finely honed and regulated approach will win many friends whilst Haugsand's will perhaps be considered too individual (though the harpsichord sonority welcomes all ye who are unsure of its most beautiful properties). Rousset is exceptional in the First Partita, and of course in others too, though he does not, for me, deliver the emotional range which these pieces afford in the hands of either Haugsand or Staier.
Amidst personal preferences, let's make no mistake: Staier's performances are still in the very top bracket, always thought-provoking and clearly argued, with moments of matchlessly vital and exquisite playing (the Gigue of the G major Partita, for instance). Each of these versions has its moments of unique magic and there is no question that these three are the leaders in the present field. Staier's set also includes Part Two of the
Bach Clavier-Übung I and II
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