Bach, J S: Keyboard Concerto No. 5 in F minor, BWV1056 (harpsichord or piano)

“Although the Three-Part Inventions bristle with incisive thoughtfulness and glee, the Concertos are harder to swallow” BBC Music Magazine

“all three works transfer well to the mandolin, tuned like the violin. The resulting sound is entrancing. Avital stylishly meets the challenge of moulding plectrum-plucked sound into long, shapely phrases and figurations...Avital's mandolin is hauntingly beautiful, putting this firmly on the wish-list of any Baroque enthusiast.” BBC Music Magazine, December 2012 ****

“These really are polished, exciting performances by Avital and the Kammerakademie Potsdam that veer between bracing tension and an expressive fragility...The Andante [of the E minor Sonata] is worth the price of the disc alone.” Gramophone Magazine, November 2012

“On this disc the combination of the lean “period” sound of Les Violons du Roy and the clear, crisply articulated and sensitively graduated piano playing of Alexandre Tharaud gives a fresh profile to these Bach keyboard concertos...[in the Concerto for Four Keyboards] which the elegance and agility of Tharaud’s ornamentation really come into their own.” The Telegraph, 8th September 2011 ****

“This is a curious mix of compromise and contradiction. The Canadian orchestra Les Violons du Roy plays on modern instruments but uses Baroque bows; modern piano replaces harpsichord as the 'keyboard', but played with stylish, spontaneous-sounding elaboration of lines and sparing use of the sustaining pedal...Yet it all works remarkably well...this is a thoroughly enjoyable 'piano' version of these glorious Concertos.” BBC Music Magazine, November 2011

“there are remarkable things here. Tharaud’s restraint in the tiny, eloquent slow movement of the F minor concerto is heartbreaking, and the ferocious accuracy of his playing in the finale of the G minor work dazzles...The coordination is flawless, and you can’t help but smile.” The Arts Desk, 7th January 2012

“What comes across irresistably in this new recording is the physical pleasure of playing Bach on a piano...At times he can make even Gould sound a touch stolid...Tharaud's semi-period players help create a tension between new and old that is highly effective.” Gramophone Magazine, December 2011

“the bracing effect of hearing this over-familiar music pared down to its essentials to a degree not even the most radical of Cafe Zimmermann's predecessors have managed is refreshing indeed.” International Record Review, July/August 2011

“Dinnerstein has Argerich's touch: her Bach swings. The Suite's gigue has jazz momentum and the F minor concerto finale sounds unstoppable...The whole, beautifully conceived programme is shot with emotion, none more than the unfashionable transcriptions...This irresistable pianist knows her mind and expresses it.” Classic FM Magazine, March 2011 *****

“there is nothing exaggerated or self-seeking about her technical display. Where she excels is in the slow movements...the involvement and emotional commitment is total...Dinnerstein's is a fascinating and soulful approach of which I hope to hear more, especially in the transcriptions to which her romantic temperament and depth of sonorities are ideally suited.” International Record Review, January 2011

“[the disc] gives a good sense of her generally romantic approach to playing the composer's music on a modern concert grand, in which expressive warmth and beauty of tone seem to be prized above other qualities. It's a style that's perfectly suited to the three chorale-prelude arrangements by great 20th-century pianists” The Guardian, 27th January 2011 ***

“Kempff's fastidious arrangement of "Nun Freut Euch, Lieben Christen Gmein" offers the most dazzling display of her virtuosity...the stately calm of the 5th Keyboard Concerto's "Largo" has an almost weightless poise, while the English Suite No 3 offers an engrossing journey between styles” The Independent, 14th January 2011 ****

“Few current pianists surge forward in Bach with such light-fingered energy and joy; listening to her finale in the fifth keyboard concerto or the start of the third English Suite you almost get giddy. She’s equally individual in ruminating mode...Dinnerstein embraces [Jesu, Joy] calmly and lovingly — the perfect close to this uneven, engaging, idiosyncratic album.” The Times, 21st January 2011 ****

“Compared to Mortensen's blend of eloquent virtuosity and tasteful discretion, the playing of Accademia Bizantina seems hard and unyielding, though there are nevertheless moments of great beauty.” BBC Music Magazine, September 2008 ***

“…Ottavio Dantone and his Italian colleagues provide beautifully transparent and balanced renderings. Most successful… are the slow movements where Dantone lets the music breathe with a degree of genuine lyricism.” Gramophone Magazine, November 2008

“...here is a triumphant vindication of the authentic approach from the Milanese harpsichordist Ottavio Dantone and his Accademia Bizantina. His performances are free-flowing within the confines of the language, and he is not afraid to indulge in expressive fantasy, notably in the cool, pizzicato-dominated largo of the F minor Concerto BWV 1056. He is accompanied by just five energetic string players - one to a part - but the effect never sounds insubstantial, and the recording neatly integrates soloist and "orchestra".” The Telegraph, 16th August 2008

“Directing from the keyboard, Dantone avoids obtruding mannerisms and keeps the music dancing. Any novelty lies instead with the Accademia’s abbreviated forces – five string players, one to a part.” The Times, 18th July 2008 ****