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Angela Hewitt & the Australian Chamber OrchestraBach Keyboard Concertos Vol.1 & 2 Hyperion Although it has often been more appropriate to record Bach's keyboard concertos on the harpsichord rather than the piano, there is a strong precedent for such performances. As early as the 1930s, Adolf Busch chose to present the continuo and cadenzas of the famous Brandenburg #5 on the modern instrument due to the variety of tonal colour available. However, it would have to wait until the late '50s and the recordings by the now legendary Glenn Gould before these concertos would reach a wider audience. Even though the original instrument brigade is liable to hijack Bach performances, there has been an equally strong argument for Bach on the piano by such fine artists as Andras Schiff and more recently, Murray Perahia. Performances of these fine concertos seem to have fallen into two interpretative camps: the echt-harpsichord approach favouring contrapuntal clarity (Gould) and a much more pedaled and therefore pianistic one (Schiff). Having already recorded the major solo works in the Bach canon to great acclaim, the Canadian pianist Angela Hewitt, with our own Australian Chamber Orchestra, offers the best of both of these interpretative approaches in these new discs. Recorded in the excellent acoustics at the Sydney Conservatorium's Verbrugghen Hall, both the soloist and orchestra are shown to great effect. Interestingly Hewitt continues to use a Fazioli piano as she has on some of her earlier Bach recordings, and those who hear these performances can understand why these relatively new pianos are presenting a real threat to the likes of Steinway and Bosendorfer. Those who were fortunate enough to witness Hewitt and the ACO in the live performances which preceded these sessions will not hesitate when buying these, for the mastery displayed throughout immediately places them at the pinnacle of Bach performances.  |
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