Bach, Glenn Gould

• Concerto In F Major ("Italian")

• Partita No. 1 In B-Flat Major

• Partita No. 2 In C Minor

Publisher: Horch House, HH01.00.68

Playing time: 39 min

Specifications: half track ¼", stereo, RTM SM 468 , CCIR, 510 nWb/m, 38 cm/s

Reel(s):               2 standard metal reels, with stickers

Packaging:         1 deluxe cardboard box

Inserts:                1 insert folder with 2 insert sheets and 2 photo prints

Homepage: https://www.horchhouse.com/bach-italian-concerto

Translation of the German review:

Glenn Gould saw the light of day in Toronto (Canada) in 1932 and also died there in 1982 at the age of only 50 from a stroke. Between the ages of three and ten he received piano lessons from his mother. She was a pianist and organist. It is to her credit that he sang along with his playing, which can also be heard on most of his recordings, as he could hardly put it down later. After the age of ten, he studied piano at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. From his teacher Guerrero he adopted the characteristic of using a low piano chair with a seat height of only 33 cm in order to be very close to the keys. He always had this chair with him when he performed, even as an adult. With this teacher he also learned his special playing technique of sensitizing the fingertips in such a way that, in addition to pressing the keys, releasing them also becomes of central importance. This allows him to precisely control the duration of the sound, which became his trademark. In addition to his performances, Glenn Gould also worked as a composer, organist and music writer. Between 1955 and 1964 he gave concerts in North America, Europe and Asia. After considering, quote from Wikipedia, "The performance of a single artist before a large crowd of people to be unworthy of the artist and unsuitable for the music," he did not perform publicly after 1964. Gould became interested in the recording process and also ran his own recording studio. The focus was on his work with the CBS label. Gould became most famous for his Bach recordings.

This edition of Bach's Concerto in F Major and two Partitas - at the keys the 27-year-old Glenn Gould - undoubtedly marks the pinnacle of what is possible in terms of the preservation status of a 63-year-old recording. The result of my listening session is an immersion in Bach's world in Gould's typical interpretive universe. Every nuance, no matter how small, of the exceptional pianist follows the consistency as only he could interpret and play out the notes: It is his inimitable shaping of phrasing in terms of volume, rhythm, articulation, accuracy and pausing. Gould transfers all his skill, elegance and emotion to the piano keyboard at every moment of his playing. If you can get involved with this musical highlight on a solo instrument, you will hardly be able to close your mind to this grandiose event.

I would like to place all the people involved in the production chain on the highest level of distinction: Glenn Gould at the keys, his recording team, and all the people who have preserved the original tape over all these years. But above all, Christoph Stickel of csmastering, who lifted the music in his studio by analog means into the tonal balance audible here, and Volker Lange of Horch House, who created this perfect master tape copy on his excellently maintained tape machines. To preserve this highest good of musical culture from the beginnings of mature sound recording, I can hardly praise effusively enough!

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)