Search - J.S. Bach, Rowland-Jones :: Bach: Suites for Solo Violoncello Vol 2 / Rowland-Jones

Excellent Performance of the Bach 'Cello Suites on Viola

josh1000 | West Hollywood, CA USA | 06/10/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Simon Rowland Jones performs the Bach 'Cello Suites with great musicianship-- he has a very tender, sensitive style which does not fall into the realm of the sentimental. The Prelude to Suite No 3 is particularly satisfying, and he plays the very sinister Prelude to Suite No 5 with admirable weight and grandeur. He performs Suite No 6 on a special five-string viola, and this is perhaps the one thing I don't enjoy about this disc. While that suite works well on a five-string 'cello (one octave lower), it doesn't quite work on a five-string viola, simply because it goes up to high. The natural warmth and roundness of the viola's sound is just lost in those upper registers on the E string (which the viola wasn't ever meant to have), and the timbre becomes thin and strange-- not exhilirating, like the sixth suite is supposed to sound. But this is a small minus to an otherwise excellent disc-- a must for any violist who collects recordings. (Also, if you are a violist, Rowland-Jones has published his version of the Bach 'cello suites. It's a great edition to study off of because it is better-researched and more carefully edited than other editions-- I use it as a reference source for my own playing.)"