Search - Johann Sebastian Bach, András Schiff :: Bach: Two part Inventions/Three Part Inventions

A Somewhat "Romanticized" Bach Performance

C. Moss | 06/12/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The first problem I have with this recording is the performer's extremely free additions of ornaments that are not in Bach's scores. While these may be somewhat justifiable as common practice in Baroque period music, they are rather unlikely considering the pedagogical nature of the composer's original intentions for these works. Schiff's use of outright RUBATO in places absolutely kills the forward-moving rhythms that one longs to hear in these pieces. Schiff's fabulous technique is evident in every piece, but his phrasing is almost as though he were playing Brahms, rather than Bach. Purists who are looking for an accurate performance from a historical perspective will NOT enjoy this CD. But again, the pianist's technical prowess is quite praiseworthy, despite the CD's lack of historical style considerations."

What is all this fuss about Gould being better than Schiff?

A 10-year old music fan | Troy, MI USA | 10/27/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Schiff plays Bach extremely well with a beautiful tone. I personally think that Schiff plays better than Gould. An eccentric person, Gould mainly does what he wants. In some pieces, he plays them extroadinarily, but most pieces, they are a mess of complete rushing and absolutely no dynamics. In almost every song he plays, Schiff shows a perfection that no one else could have. I enjoy listening to him and learn a lot."

Schiff gets at the heart of the music

Lukas Schulze (lschulze@ucsd.edu) | San Diego, CA | 09/24/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"These performances are valuable just as are most of Schiff's Bach recordings: they offer an important alternative to Gould's highly idiosyncratic and personal treatments of this music. Schiff manages to uncover all sorts of structural, harmonic, and phrasing nuances that are so important in this music, and which Gould often steamrolls over. Schiff is also technically impressive, possessing a touch which is generally light, though often assertive and forceful. These recordings seem to me to elucidate a good deal more about these pieces than any other recordings available. Get the Gould, but get these first."