Johann Sebastian Bach: Goldberg Variations

“One of the towering masterpieces of the repertoire is given a thrilling new account on this recording by Malcolm Archer. Respect is owed to anyone who can climb the peaks of this extraordinary work, and Archer scales them with such technical flair and panache that one is never aware of the effort involved. It is fascinating to hear the wonderful sounds and colours of the harpischord here, and in Archer’s hands the instrument acquires infinite variety. The performance is beautifully paced, with each variation given a considered and individual account, whilst the cumulative effect is as thrilling as the logic is inevitable. Archer’s performance also highlights the internal logic and sub-divisions of the whole as well so that the listener recognizes and appreciates the various levels on which this piece operates, whilst never feeling that this is for anything other than musical ends. It achieves the most desirable result of a performance of this work – one feels one is listening to something which is continually surprising, whilst also travelling towards a destination which is utterly inevitable. A stylish and beautiful release, which also contains an excellent and informative essay by David Owen-Norris which should be required reading for anyone interested in the question of whether the piano or harpsichord is their instrument of choice for this music.” — David Bednall

Johann Sebastian Bach’s ‘Aria with diverse variations’, composed in 1742, and whose title page proclaims that it was ‘Composed for Music Lovers, to Refresh their Spirits’, quickly acquired the musical icon status which it enjoys today. Bach’s son, Carl Philipp Emanuel, exclaimed: ‘What diversity! What perfection of the hands and of expression this art requires!’ Forkel, Bach’s first biographer, thought that ‘the quodlibet might alone render its author immortal, though it is far from being the best part’. It was one of the first pieces of Bach to be published outside Germany, extracts appearing in Sir John Hawkins’s History of Music in 1776. Count Kaiserling, who commissioned the piece, was not content with paying a mere fee, but instead presented Bach with a golden goblet filled with a hundred golden coins. J.G. Goldberg, a pupil of Bach, was resident harpsichord virtuoso in Kaiserling’s household. It fell to him to play the Count’s variations whenever requested – as a solace for insomnia, on occasions – hence the popular nickname for the work: the Goldberg Variations.