Re: F minor Harpsichord Concerto

[Bradley P Lehman <bpl@umich.edu>]

On Tue, 29 Aug 2000, Anne  Smith wrote:

> Bradley wrote:
> >And there are two of the keyboard concertos (BWV 1058 in G minor and BWV
> >1056 in F minor), both played nicely.  Those are from November 15, 1967,
> >and September 11, 1957.
>
> I have these in the Original Jacket Collection.  They  were recorded with
> the Columbia Symphony Orchestra under Vladmir Golschmann.

Different performances.  The ones with the Columbia are commercial.
These on the Music&Arts are live (1957) and broadcast (1967).  As with any
GG duplication, it's fun to compare the commercial version with the
alternatives.

And here are some of Kevin Bazzana's notes from the M&A:  "The tempi [in
the f minor] are notably slower than in the Columbia recording (...).
The outer movements have a big, stocky sound, and stubbornly refuse to
give way to the fleet pyrotechnics of some of Gould's other Bach concerto
recordings.  The real distinction of this performance is in the extreme
and moving delicacy of the famous slow movement, with its lovely keyboard
cantilena accompanied by pizzicato strings. (...) This broadcast
performance of the [g minor] here resembles much more closely Gould's
corresponding commercial recording. (...) [Golschmann] was an ideal
accompanist for Gould, maintaining firm control over the orchestra while
acceding entirely to Gould's conception of the work at hand.  Rarely did
Gould get so much cooperation from a conductor, especially during his
hectic concert days."

The M&A f minor is with the CBC Symphony/Nicholas Goldschmidt.  The g
minor is Toronto/Golschmann.

Bradley Lehman | http://www-personal.umich.edu/~bpl/ | Dayton, VA, USA

"Music must cause fire to flare up from the spirit - and not only
sparks from the clavier...." - Alfred Cortot