Best Bach Playing Performer

[Franz_Liszt]

What is the Best Bach Playing performer in your opinion.

[ned]

Angela Hewitt.
Also Dinu Lipatti (Partita in B flat).
Sorry, I can't stand Glenn Gould.
Ned

[BuyBuy]

I was impressed by the young Turkish pianist Fazil Say, who does a beautiful job with the French Suites.

[Rach3]

Glenn Gould

[rachfan]

Andras Schiff is quite good.

[pianobaron88]

I'm not certain who the best Bach performer is, but I would like to say that Glenn Gould is without a doubt not him.  Gould is a genius, and carries this into his playing of anything, but I believe that many a time he would perform a Bach piece in a certain fashion in order to spite the Bach purists.  He may have held the key to playing Bach as it should be played, but he certainly never used it.

[amee]

I like Andras Schiff's playing as well.

[SHR]

The best bach players, for me at least, try for a mellow, non percussive tone, not dry and like a harpsichord, but smooth, almost like string instruments. I don't buy this idea that because Bach hadn't heard a modern piano then we must not use the full range now available (except over-use of the sustain pedal). Some young Russians bang and make a percussive noise in Bach, which I don't like, but then.... (Too many modern grands have a hard tone and require toning down by skilled needling of the hammers - by a qualified technician). There is passion and romance in Bach which some would understate or omit altogether. I was once accused of playing some of the 48 in a way which made them sound like Mendelssohn - it's a problem.

[PoSeiDoN]

I'm not a big Perahia fan, but I like his Bach.  I think Andras Schiff takes the cake in this category, though..

[elfi1879]

GLENN GOULD

[BoliverAllmon]

I have a cd of Schiff playing bach's 2 and 3 part inventions. I personally don't like them. They are really dry. My piano teacher (who was the bach expert at peabody conservatory) plays  them better in my opinion. I don't know about Schiff's other bach works, but the inventions weren't that great. Also, perahia was not that great at the goldberg variations. I don't like dry monotone, but I really despise romantic version of the pieces also. I believe that Bach is best played somewhere in the middle.

boliverallmon

[Pianofan]

Martha Argerich is fantastic.  

[bachopoven]

I have been hearing that Murray Perahia  plays the best Bach English Suites.

And, by the way, he is coming to Schwartz Center at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia on April 29 next year.

But from my limited range of experiences of Bach performances, I think Glenn Gould plays Bach best.

[bachopoven]

I have been hearing that Murray Perahia  plays the best Bach English Suites.

And, by the way, he is coming to Schwartz Center at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia on April 29 next year.

But from my limited range of experiences of Bach performances, I think Glenn Gould plays Bach best in general.

[e60m5]

Gould is a genius.

However, I find that I myself cannot understand, for want of a better word, many of his interpretational decisions regarding Bach.

I put this down to my inability to comprehend his genius rather than Gould's plain insanity. Maybe given some years, I will be able to understand what he does.

For the time being, however, my vote goes to Murray Perahia.

[chopiszte]

I think nobody understands Bach as well as Yo Yo Ma, but regarding keyboard interpreters, I will need more time to make such a decision.

[chopiszte]

I would have loved to hear probably the most enthusiastic Bach-players of history play Bach-Chopin, and Bach himself too.

Alas, this is not a possibility.

[AMR]

Probably most pianists would agree that the best Bach players on recording would be Glenn Gould, Roselyn Tureck, and Edwin Fischer.  There is also a living pianist from Brazil, by the name of Jao Carlos Martins, who is exceptional.  But really, to compare such minor pianists as Perriah and Schiff with the great masters is kind of silly.

[PoSeiDoN]

Hmmm, that last sentence gets me.  Sorry if I offend some Gould groupies in here, but Perahia and Schiff are a few of the only SENSIBLE, CAPABLE players who have been mentioned in this forum.  They play as the composer intended, whereas Gould took so many liberties that he, I must say it, perverted the music.

I know many of you shall differ in opinion, but the 1st amendment covers us all!  

[AMR]

 It hardly seems worth the time and effort to argue with you.  But some things you said are so amatuer and childish, that I must correct you.
 First of all, I hope, for your sake, that I misundersood you when you said that Schiff and Perriah are more "capable" than Gould, Tureck, and Fischer.  Gould, for one, had one of the most perfect facilities in history, and Perriah, though he's a very nice man and a thoughtful player, is not great on the same level as these others.  
 I am also wondering who told you that music can be played "correctly."  I wonder what your basis is for knowing what Bach's "intentions" were.  Indeed, it may be possible that you have more authority than Gould, but let's be serious, how much Bach have you even played?  Have you even read the biographies of the great composers?  
 Please, go learn a bit more before you subject us to your unfounded, dilattante, cliches.

[PoSeiDoN]

First, let it be known that I've absolutely no problem with Fischer.  He taught my absolute favorite pianist (whose intellectualism I'm sure you deplore), Alfred Brendel.  

While the artist has some room to move, there is indeed a basic way that baroque "should" be played.  And I think most educated, experienced pianists would agree.  I expect two things out of a baroque pianist.  Number one, using pedal sparingly.  This is not something I prefer...it has to do with the baroque time period, which obviously, should have a much dryer sound than, say, something from the Romantic period.  I've heard Gould recordings where he leans on the pedal when there should be none.  The second thing I require is that the artist SOMEWHAT honor the dynamics offered by the composer.  I've heard numerous Gould performances in which he does EXACTLY the OPPOSITE of what is written.  So, I have good reason to believe that he goes out of his way to contradict the composer.  If you like this "antagonistic" style of playing, then you should, by all means, be a Gould fan.  I personally tend to think that any composer rolls in his grave as Gould play his/her piece(s).

I respect you for sticking up for your pianist, AMR.  It shows dedication.  But don't attack me in the process.  Have a swell day.

[Hmoll]

Some people love Gould, and some can't stand his playing.
While he is not my favorite player of Bach - or any other composer for that matter - I recognize and appreciate his talent, and what he contributed to the art of piano playing, namely, taking some music that was not performed as much by concert pianists - like the two and three part inventions, and some other lesser played Bach - and exposing that music more to audiences. Also, his extremely linear approach to Baroque music may have influenced a lot of players.
So, while he is not my favorite, he was still an important interpreter of Bach.

One of my favorites that I am listening to now is his fellow Canadian, Angela Hewitt.

[ned]

Hmoll:

We seem to agree on some things.  Angela Hewitt in my opinion is absolutely the  best for Bach. When you compare her recording of the Toccatas for example to Gould's it's like comparing Artur Rubinstein's Chopin recordings to those of Vladimir de Pachmann.
In the first case we have beautifully structured, natural performances and in the second , capricious, almost autistic, expostulations.

I grant Gould his talent. I even heard him live in the Beethoven First Concerto, but I get no pleasure from listening to his recordings anymore, even the Goldberg. And I am afraid his sense of humor was hopelessly juvenile.
Ned

[BoliverAllmon]

WillardPalmer recommends:

Martin Galling

Kenneth Gilbert

Gould

Christiane Jaccottet

Ralph kirkpatrick

Ton Koopman

Wanda Landowska

George Malcolm

Schiff

[AMR]

 What was that about de Pachmann?  He was highly regarded during his time both by the public and by fellow musicians.  Listening to his recordings, one can hear that he had a sophisticated style.  Though he was an old man when he made these recordings (the process of which he hated), one can hear that he possesed a wonderful technique and his playing never sounds exaggerated.  Schonberg's book is a great introduction to the history, but his first priority is to make the history interesting.  Indeed, I enjoyed reading his chapter about de Pachmann, but it's exaggerated and opinionated.  
 
 Don't believe everything that the some stodgy professor, critic, or music editor says.  Most of these people say things to compensate for their own lack of talent.  

 I'd also like to clarify what I said earlier.  I'm not a Gould "fan," and I wasn't writing to stick up for him.  I was pointing out that there is a marked difference between the great pianists and the ones who are sold to us.  It's just like pop singers, who most musicians would agree have little musical talent, but a bulk of the world believes that they do because the media tells them so.  

[bachopoven]

I know many of you shall differ in opinion, but the 1st amendment covers us all!   [/quote]

Recomposing is one thing. If you say he perverted the music, that's another thing. So he perverted the music, huh?

[Hmoll]

Ned,

Sorry I did not reply to you right away.

I haven't heard Angela Hewett play the Tocattas. Must check them out.

Like you, I will grant Glenn Gould his due, but I just don't reach for his CDs as frequently as I used to.

[la_carrenio2003]

Dear colleagues, I'm surprised that nobody mentioned Robert D. Levin. The guy is a GENIUS, I highly reccommend to find his records on the Hänssler edition of the English Suites and the Well-Tempered Clavier, this last record on clavecin, clavicorde,orgue and ancient piano. He has this theory that the WTC was written for several keyboard instruments and he explains why  he chose the instrument in each case, and he performs WONDERFUL in all of them. Sorry about my grammar, I'm spanish speaking. Chao, un gusto compartir con ustedes.

[ned]

Hmoll:

Most of my Gould is from the vinyl era, but I do like his recordings of Schoenberg, Berg and Krenek and the Byrd and Orlando Gibbons recording. He was the first to put some of this stuff on record.

My teacher lent me Gould's Mozart sonatas (to test my reaction, I think). I must say I could only listen for about a dozen measures before I turned it off.

As I recall, his recording of the Scriabin Third and Prokofiev Seventh Sonatas were good.  Unusual repertoire for him.

But in the case of Bach, I think there has been significant competition in recent years as more first-rate pianists make extensive Bach recordings on the concert grand.  At least to my taste, Gould's approach has not worn well over time.

Ned

[eddie92099]

Gould, Argerich or Richter because they make Bach sound more interesting than it is!  
Ed

[GodScriabin]

GOULD!!  

[guven]

I was impressed by the young Turkish pianist Fazil Say, who does a beautiful job with the French Suites.

Agree, his Chaconne is the best I've ever heard .


Glenn Gould rocks of course but it seems like Gould is our genius bad guy for the piano music .
Just like Yo Yo Ma's Bach Suites .. everyone listens them from Yo Yo Ma at first because he has full of new ideas just like Gould, but at last, tries to play like Rostropovich  

Tatiana Nikolayeva is good on Bach .

[Emma]

I think that there are many ways to interpret Bach, but my personal favorite is Schiff.
I have heard him live several times, and have always been very impressed with his humble and genuine approach to the music.
Schiff leaves me inspired by the music, not his pianism (which is true musicianship.)
Because Schiff looks at the music from a composer's point of view, and not just from a pianist's, he proves that each note, phrase and motif are vitally important to make the music meaningful and effortless.
Another thing that I have enjoyed, (at this concert he was playing and conducting one of Bach's keyboard concertos, I forget which one,:)) is that he plays the piano as if it is the whole orchestra- at one point during the concert I would not have been able to tell if it was the piano I was hearing or the orchestra, if it had not been that I saw his hands moving over the keys!
All that I'm trying to say is that he does not get in the way of the music.

       -Emma

p.s. Schiff's Mozart is quintessential.

[zeck]

 People, show some love for Sviatoslav Richter and Grigory Sokolov

[davidjosepha]

People, show some love for Sviatoslav Richter and Grigory Sokolov

I haven't listened to too much Bach, but I can say that I really enjoy Richter's recording of WTC.

[iansinclair]

I can't help but notice that everyone is focussing on pianists, which I suppose isn't that surprising.

But...

My choice for the keyboard works would be Wanda Landowska on harpsichord.  And for organ works, there are many really fine players -- Anton Heiler and Helmut Walcha come to mind.

Trouble with Bach is very simple, really: he wrote down the notes, and sometimes (but not always) some ornamentation.  No dynamics.  No rhythmic variation.  No organ registrations to speak of.  No nothing.  Just notes.  So it is up to the performer to do a good bit of interpretation, and that means that the listener's preferences are going to be influenced by how he or she feels the performer is doing in that regard.

And if you ask three people you are going to get four answers...

[scherzo123]

Angela Hewitt and Glenn Gould

[patrickd]

Gould, Richter, and Sokolov.

[johnlewisgrant]

On piano..

Gould, Richter, Feinberg

[lukew]

I'm listening to Richter recorded at the Moscow Conservatory in 1969 and remastered in 2011.  I have listened to Gould, and Hewitt, and Turek, and some others who have dropped from memory.  It seems to me that Richter reflects the spiritual essence of the Bach compositions more than any other.  That subtlety is so easily lost in performance when it is subjugated to technical prowess.  I used to be a Gould fan, but over the years found myself becoming increasingly dissatisfied with his approach to musical performance. There is a line in the Four Quartets by T.S. Eliot,"...To be conscious is not to be in time..."  Richter's performance leads one beyond the structure and form of the music to its subtle timeless essence without wasted flamboyance, without strutting technical mastery.  The mastery is there, but as servant to the spirit of Bach's revelation.

[pianoman1800]

Angela Hewitt easily. She is absolutely terrific! So passionated, colourful, and musical but still with great clarity, singing tone and is very pure. I have most of her recordings that I get goosepumps Evert time i listen! Cannot wait for her Art of Fugue release this year!!