Johann Sebastian Bach Pieter Wispelwey - Johann Sebastian Bach 6 Suites per Violoncello Solo Senza Basso (36 tracks) +Album Reviews

This is how Bach should be played

B.E. ten Cate | THE HAGUE, THE NETHERLANDS | 07/02/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is Wispelwey's second recording of Bach's cello suites. The first recording dates from the 80s, and in the future he wants to do a third recording. If you compare both recordings, you'll understand why. A comparison between the two recordings shows how Wispelwey matured and how his opinions changed as to how Bach should be played. This recording is not only played faster and less rigid than the previous one, it also played with more boldness. It's predecessor sometimes sounded a bit too hesitant. Again Wispelwey plays on a period instrument, which allows a vivid performance. This album won many international prizes. Listening to it, this should come as no surprise. This is my favourite performance of Bach's cello suites. I am looking forward to Wispelwey's third interpretation."

Measured, spare, beautiful

David Levine | Hopkinton, NH USA | 11/25/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have four recordings of the Bach cello suites: Wispelwey, Casals, Yo-Yo Ma, and some played by Jacqueline Dupres. I love Casal's older recording. Casals plays with great abandon and fire; he felt that all Bach should be played as if by a gypsy. Ma's seems a bit unfeeling to me, somewhat rushed in places. Dupres is full of fire and both rhythmic and dynamic variations not necessarily in the music. A bit mannered and uncontrolled. I continually return to Wispelwey's wonderful music. His playing is restrained and measured, yet conveys a deep sensitivity to the music. His playing is dry, spare, unadorned and with little vibrato on a period instrument. What emerges is a fresh look at Bach, and a wonderful interpretation that seems to strike to the very essence of the music. Recommended above all others."

Vigorous but refined

David A. Beamer | Clawson, MI United States | 11/21/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For a work as popular as this, it's a wonder why most of the recordings are "modern" (Ma, Fournier, et al), and why there are so few "original instrument" recordings like this one. Wispelwey plays with imagination and vigor. An example of these traits (and perfectly in keeping with Baroque performance practice), is how he takes the final chords of the D minor Prelude, and instead of sitting on them (as is written), he plays a set of furious arpeggios on the chords. However, on the whole, the ornmenation is relatively subdued throughout.The sound quality of the recording is examplary. As a matter of fact, this is one of the only knocks I have against the recording -- it's miked so closely that you can hear Wispelwey pound the fingers of his left hand down onto the fingerboard. While this gives him excellent articulation, the slight thudding noise is a bit distracting. (And of course, the instrument is tuned almost a half-step low. Cellists with perfect pitch: beware.)His use of vibrato is very spare, which also follows the performance practice. At times he could use a teeny bit more warmth, for example in the famous Sarabande of the C minor suite. He seems to be downplaying the emotions of this simple yet profound movement. I prefer Ma's rendition of this movement (but, then, the movement is a special favorite of Ma's...).All in all, an excellent choice for an "original instrument" version of the Suites. Recommended."

Great recording, great playing

Fred Ingham | Seattle, WA United States | 07/13/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I also have the Bylsma recording on Sony Classics, and I definately prefer the Wispelwey. The rhythmic and dynamic interpretation is engaging without being too mannered. The playing is crisp and precise. The sound is terrific on this recording. I listened to all the other samples on Amazon (Ma, Starker, Fournier, etc.) and this one stood out as the best. Though the first prelude comes off a little fast to my ear, the rest of the tracks are right on. I love this CD. Wispelwey also contributed some interesting liner notes that give you his perspective on the various movements in the suite."

Worth Every Cent - and Then Some!

Leslie Richford | Selsingen, Lower Saxony | 02/14/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Johann Sebastian Bach (1685- - 1750): 6 Suites per violoncello solo senza basso. Performed by Pieter Wispelwey on a baroque cello by Barak Norman 1710 and, for Suite No. 6, on a violoncello piccolo (anonymous, 18th century). Recorded at the Church of Valkkoog in the Netherlands in January 1998. Released by Channel Classics as CCS 12298 (LC 4481) in 1998. Total playing time: 140'03".

This was my third recording of these suites, and I must say that I have thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it, especially as it is vastly different from the other two recordings of the same work which I know. Pablo Casals, in his 1930's classic recordings, plays superbly, but his style is, of course, "romantic", with plenty of vibrato and the performer "searching" for the right tone in the Preludes. - Anner Bylsma's second (1992) recording of these works on the "Servais", a Stradivari cello from the Smithsonian collection, is totally different again. Its main advantages, from my point of view, are the wonderful, resonant sound of the oversized instrument and the way in which Bylsma makes the dance rhythms plain. Pieter Wispelwey is, to my mind, more subtle and requires closer listening. A German critic, on the basis of whose review I bought these discs, claimed that the first three suites were played a little superficially, but that the second of the two CDs was so superb as to make it worthwhile buying both. I'm not sure I agree that the first three suites are "superficial", I would say rather that Wispelwey sees them as Bach's introduction to his exploration of the possibilities of cello, drawing out the melodies and rhythms and generally not sounding too different from other performers. But with the second CD it is really a matter of "Wow!" I don't really have the vocabulary to explain why, but Suites 4 through 6 are here absolutely riveting, and in Suite No. 6, here played on a violoncello piccolo with an extra string, Wispelwey soars to heights I would scarcely have believed possible. Of course, I am not a musician, just a listener, so definitely not an expert - but as a "music lover" I can only say that Wispelwey's recording was worth every cent and then some!"

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