Bach, J S: Three-part Invention (Sinfonia) No. 11 in G minor, BWV797

So much has been written about the sensation caused by Gould’s first studio recording of the Goldberg Variations in June 1955 that it is hardly necessary to repeat the story of this “birth of a legend” here. But even though it was this recording that laid the foundations for Gould’s international reputation as a Bach interpreter, its roots lie much further back. From the very outset his Bach had been as unconventional as it was distinctive – and so it remains, in spite of regular attempts to enthrone a “new Glenn Gould”. (Conversely, this has meant that every new recording of Bach’s keyboard works is judged by Gould’s standards.) His habit of slouching over the piano, the expansive gestures of his hands and arms, his stabbing nonlegato (almost always without the use of the sustaining pedal), his breathtaking polyphony and his often extreme tempi all result in a kind of pianism that seems to come from another planet, reminding us of Stefan George’s poem in Schoenberg’s Second String Quartet, “Entrückung” (Rapt Otherworldliness): “I breathe air from another planet.” [...]

DVD: The Goldberg Variations (1981) directed by Bruno Monsaingeon

Picture format: 4:3

NTSC; colour; DVD-5

Language: English (with subtitles in French and German)

Multi award winning guitarist David Russell’s latest recording for Telarc features a collection of some of his favourite music from the baroque repertoire including five pieces by J. S. Bach, and suites by Handel, Francois Couperin, and lutenist composer Silvius Weiss.

Winner of the 2005 Grammy award for best instrumental soloist, guitarist David Russell is internationally renowned for his superb musicianship and inspired artistry. Since 1995, he has recorded exclusively for Telarc International, with which he has recorded 17 CDs, among them the Grammy award winning Aire Latino. Named a Fellow of The Royal Academy of Music in London in 1997, Russell has also won the Medal of Honor from the Conservatory of the Balearics, along with numerous international competitions, including the Andrés Segovia Competition, the José Ramírez Competition and Spain's prestigious Francisco Tárrega Competition. Two of his recent Telarc CDs were named ‘Editor’s Choice’ by Gramophone.

The Partita No. 6 in E minor (BWV 830) is one of Bach’s most introspective keyboard compositions, with an unusual Toccata, here expanded to incorporate a vast fugue at its centre. Sinfonia No. 11 recalls the dignified 18th-century Sarabande, a style Russell has recorded in various forms throughout his discography. Handel’s Suite No. 7 is filled with references to French music, including an overture inspired by the work of Jean-Baptiste Lully. The French theme also lends itself well to Vingt-Sixième Ordre from Book IV of Couperin’s Pièces de Clavecin. The final selection on the CD is a suite by Weiss which has been part of David Russel’s repertoire for many years.

"This recording is the result of "love at first sight" – mine for this wonderful Dulcken harpsichord! I have been fortunate in having had opportunity to play the instrument on several occasions, each time with the same emotion. Following my fancy, I played pieces that particularly appeal to me emotionally, most of them written by that great man of genius, Johann Sebastian Bach, since the qualities of this extraordinary instrument are so perfectly attuned to his music, combining brilliance and refinement, power and interiority. I have tried to create a programme that is both diverse and coherent, including various writing processes and genres of which Bach particularly found, such as traditional counterpoint, the fantasia and dances. The dances I have chosen have been isolated from their suites so that we may hear them differently and see them in a new light, in a different context, thus also highlighting their specificities. In the same spirit, I have also removed other pieces from their usual contexts. In the end the programme offers a contrast in forms, effects and atmospheres, like a concert; but there is unity in the perfect entente between the music and this exceptional instrument by Dulcken." Violaine Cochard