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Dinu Lipatti, the greatest interpreter of Bach on the Piano

11/11/1998

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Dinu Lipatti, largely forgotten by classical music listeners, was considered by many of his contemporaries to be the greatest pianist of his day. What he could coax out of a piano was so sublime that even his fellow pianists felt out of his league. Although his presentation is effortlessly note perfect, unlike the pyrotechnics of today's flashier performers, Lipatti puts tremendous feeling into his performances. His command and vision is stunning, especially in the Bach Partita #1, perhaps his single greatest performance . Although playing Bach has always been a severe test of both technique and imagination, Lipatti takes this piece to another realm, where the mathematical precision of Bach and the "volcano" (Pablo Casals) of emotion that lies under the surface of the notes merge to produce a Bach no one has heard before or since. Never has such a warm, sympathetic reading of Bach been so completely consistent with his rigorous underpinnings. A stunning achievement. Lastly, if you can get a copy of his live, final concert at Besancon (he died of Leukemia at age 33), it contains the same content as this CD, but it also has the presence and depth one would expect from such a live recording. It is every bit as amazing, if not more so, as this recording. It also contains the Waltzes by Chopin (also amazing, and in fact the pieces Lipatti was most famous for); it is missing one waltz because he was so weak from his sickness that he had to be carried off the stage before he collapsed of exhaustion. He died two months later."

The Best Bach Since 1750

Michael Sheas | Arlington Heights, IL. | 01/25/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I've heard Bach a hundreds of times by dozens of performers and all previous attempts have done little more than put me to sleep. I cast all classical performances of Bach aside and determined that Baroque music, on the whole, served as little more than yawnful entertainment manufactured for the kings and queens for whom the songs were commisioned to be written.



But this is different. It is as though I have never heard Bach before. Truth is, because of the performances, I just wasn't engaged enough to be listening. This Bach is beautiful.



Dinu Lipatti grabs you by your soul and pulls you into the music. Not with force, mind you, but with gentle persuasion. Each note by Lipatti means something. Each note has real feeling behind it and is exactly where it is meant to be played.



This CD has, bar none, the beautiful rendition of the Joy of Man's desiring I've ever heard. I don't think I've heard anything more beautiful on Piano.



Don't overlook Siciliana either. It is magnificent.



I'm in awe of Dinu Lipatti's accomplishments and I'm glad he was here for a short time to bring us some of the most wonderful music I've ever listened to.

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