Bach, J S: Fantasia in C minor, BWV906

Written to entertain a certain Count Keyserlingk in his waking hours, Bach's Goldberg Variatioins is a tour de force of keyboard writing and this represents one of its greatest recordings. Also on the programme are two popular Fantasies plus the jolly Italian Concerto

The former German Democratic Republic took its role as guardian of the important German cultural traditions, especially in music, very seriously, and this can clearly be seen not only in the magnificent archives of music from central Germany and the court of Frederick the Great, but also in collections of early instruments. This 2-CD set features music performed on keyboards produced by some of the greatest instrument makers of their time, including

Gottfried Silbermann, Heinrich Harrass and Johann Jacob Donat. They are preserved in collections at the Händel-Haus at Halle/Saale, and in music instrument museums at Leipzig, Markneukirchen and Potsdam Sanssouci.

"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

Janne Rättyä is an international soloist and has been professor for Classical Accordian Studies at the University of Music and Dramatic Arts in Graz, Austria since 2003. He writes “….one should take advantage and experiment with the still undiscovered possibilities the accordion has to offer with regard to old music. This I feel, would be too interesting an adventure to pass by!”