Those that have followed this site for some time probably know by now that the keyboard music of Johann Sebastian Bach is of particular interest to the Icelandic pianist Víkingur Ólafsson. That interest first emerged on recording with the release of Bach Reworks / Part 1, which was described as “a single extended, free-flowing composition, in which the juxtaposition of Bach’s original works and other composers’ transcriptions reveals the timeless character of Bach’s music.” I was not particularly impressed by this album, coming away from the overall program of the album with memories of a road paved with good intentions (which ultimately leads to you-know-where).
courtesy of Crossover Media
Tomorrow Deutsche Grammophon will release Ólafsson’s latest album consisting entirely of a single Bach composition, the BWV 988 set of “Goldberg” variations (without any context of related perspectives). I find that every time I encounter this music, whether in performance or on recording, I always have fresh impressions to rub shoulders with past experiences. Ironically, the strongest of those impressions involve a performance I experienced through recital, even though it is also available as a recording. The recital took place on October 13, 2013; and the pianist was András Schiff. He provided his own notes for the program book, in which he presented the unfolding of the 30 variations as a “journey.” His metaphor was so robust that, to this day, I keep that program book with all of my other BWV 988 albums.
Ólafsson clearly has his own perspectives. His repertoire of metaphors is impressively vivid. Nevertheless, they offer little to the attentive listener that is as informative or compelling as Schiff’s approach. Thus, while Ólafsson brings solid keyboard technique to his recording, the listening experience tends to devolve into those conditions reflected by the “one damned thing after another” epithet. (Regular readers probably know that this is not the first time I have evoked that epithet!)
Apparently, Ólafsson has made arrangements to give recital performances of BWV 988 across six continents during the current season. This may be the most focused season that a pianist (or any other recitalist, for that matter) has planned. However, his plan strikes me as more of an “Olympic event” than an effort to “spread the word” across an impressively large number of audiences. Personally, where any composition that draws the attention of a large number of pianists is concerned, I am more interested in comparing alternative points of view.
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