Bach Das Wohltempirte Klavier, Book 2

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Composer or Director: Johann Sebastian Bach

Label: ECM New Series

Magazine Review Date: 9/1991

Media Format: CD or Download

Media Runtime: 150

Mastering:

DDD

Catalogue Number: 847 936-2

Tracks:

Composition	Artist Credit
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C, BWV870	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C minor, BWV871	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C sharp, BWV872	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C sharp minor, BWV873	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: D, BWV874	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: D minor, BWV875	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: E flat, BWV876	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: D sharp minor, BWV877	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: E, BWV878	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: E minor, BWV879	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F, BWV880	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F minor, BWV881	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F sharp, BWV882	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F sharp minor, BWV883	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: G, BWV884	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: G minor, BWV885	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: A flat, BWV886	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: G sharp minor, BWV887	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: A, BWV888	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: A minor, BWV889	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B flat, BWV890	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B flat minor, BWV891	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B, BWV892	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B minor, BWV893	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord

Composer or Director: Johann Sebastian Bach

Label: ECM New Series

Magazine Review Date: 9/1991

Media Format: Cassette

Media Runtime: 0

Mastering:

DDD

Catalogue Number: 847 936-4

Tracks:

Composition	Artist Credit
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C, BWV870	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C minor, BWV871	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C sharp, BWV872	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C sharp minor, BWV873	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: D, BWV874	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: D minor, BWV875	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: E flat, BWV876	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: D sharp minor, BWV877	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: E, BWV878	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: E minor, BWV879	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F, BWV880	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F minor, BWV881	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F sharp, BWV882	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F sharp minor, BWV883	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: G, BWV884	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: G minor, BWV885	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: A flat, BWV886	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: G sharp minor, BWV887	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: A, BWV888	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: A minor, BWV889	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B flat, BWV890	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B flat minor, BWV891	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B, BWV892	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord
(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B minor, BWV893	Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Composer Keith Jarrett, Harpsichord

Author: Nicholas Anderson

If, as I do, you enjoy Bach's 48 Preludes and Fugues played on a variety of keyboard instruments, then Keith Jarrett's choice of a piano for Book 1 and a harpsichord for Book 2 may well appeal to you. I have been listening to his performances, especially of Book 1—which has been available for some time ((CD) 835 246-2, 10/88)—many times over and find much both to admire and enjoy. Jarrett seems to me to have successfully bridged the jazz world with the classical, proving himself in the process to be quite a formidable Bach player. There is nothing gimmicky or shallow in his playing; indeed, his fine rhythmic sense allied to a lively feeling for gesture, his grasp of ornament and his sheer spontaneity are aspects of the jazz musician's craft as much as the classical player's and they serve Bach's music extremely well.
If I have a criticism to make of Jarrett's Bach playing, it is that rhythmically he errs on the side of caution, seldom if ever allowing himself that degree of latitude—an effective and important aspect of style—favoured by more seasoned harpsichordists. On the other hand, there is no lack of vitality in his pulse and some readers I know will appreciate his keeping to the straight and narrow. The poetic C sharp major and the D minor Preludes (Book 2) provide good examples.
Listening to Book 2, one cannot but be impressed by Jarrett's fluency and seemingly effortless grasp of a technique which is, after all, quite different from that demanded by the piano. His is gentle, clearly articulated, unfussy and unpretentious playing which reaches the heart of the music without distraction or detour. This is demonstrated in the lovely E flat Prelude, where I distinctly hear Jarrett doing a Glenn Gould and humming along—a good sign rather than a bad one, I always feel.
I part company with him in a mild way over his execution of the grace-note in the three places where it occurs in this same Prelude; but he is in the best company, with players like Davitt Moroney (Harmonia Mundi) offering the same solution. My preference though, is for Kenneth Gilbert (Archiv Produktion) who, along with Wanda Landowska (RCA), Gustav Leonhardt (Deutsche Harmonia Mundi/BMG) and Colin Tilney (Hyperion), fit the passing note more comfortably into the prevailing motion. But, as I implied earlier on, these are performances which are likely to give enduring pleasure, above all, perhaps, for Jarrett's awareness of the music's poetic content. There is a serenity and a sensibility in his playing of the E major Prelude and Fugue, for example, which convey variously the grandeur, the delicate tracery and the poetry of Bach's music while also underlining its timelessness.
In short, an impressive and mainly satisfying release which stands up to comparison with the many fine performances currently available. My first choices remain Moroney (harpsichord), Tilney (clavichord, Book 1; harpsichord, Book 2), Gilbert (harpsichord) and Edwin Fischer (piano—EMI), but Jarrett's interpretation is not far behind in my affection and esteem. The instrument sounds well, but is described rather in the manner of a cheap and probably undrinkable EC wine as Italian/German style. A fine release.'

Bach Das Wohltempirte Klavier, Book 2

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C, BWV870

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C minor, BWV871

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C sharp, BWV872

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: C sharp minor, BWV873

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: D, BWV874

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: D minor, BWV875

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: E flat, BWV876

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: D sharp minor, BWV877

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: E, BWV878

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: E minor, BWV879

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F, BWV880

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F minor, BWV881

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F sharp, BWV882

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: F sharp minor, BWV883

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: G, BWV884

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: G minor, BWV885

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: A flat, BWV886

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: G sharp minor, BWV887

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: A, BWV888

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: A minor, BWV889

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B flat, BWV890

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B flat minor, BWV891

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B, BWV892

(Das) Wohltemperierte Klavier, '(The) Well-Tempered Clavier, Movement: B minor, BWV893