[Subutai]

Brandenburg Concertos : Brandenburg European Ensemble
Orchestral Suites: Freiburger Baroque Orchestra
Violin Concertos: Nigel Kennedy & Berlin Phil
Keyboard Concertos: Glenn Gould & Columbia Symphony

Just the Orchestral ma'am, just the Orchestral

 

[Krummhorn]

For organ music of JS Bach, Helmut Walcha's 1956 recording of "The Art of Fugue" on Deutsche Grammophon. A stereo version was released in 1960.
I have this complete works of Bach for organ on LP with the DG label. Outstanding recording in every way, and Walcha's interpretation seems so true for the music of Bach.

 

[Monsalvat]

Walcha also recorded an earlier cycle of the Bach organ works in mono, for Archiv Produktion, between 1947 and 1952, which I also recommend. It has more colorful registrations (being on historical instruments that survived the Second World War; one in Lübeck and the other in Kappel) but the same style of playing.

For the Art of Fugue played by an ensemble I would check out Neville Marriner and the Academy of St.-Martin-in-the-Fields, recorded in 1974. They also recorded the Musical Offering in 1978.

Well-Tempered Clavier: check out Schiff (I like both recordings), Richter, and Edwin Fischer for the piano; Helmut Walcha (particularly the Archiv recording), Gustav Leonhardt, and Kenneth Gilbert for the harpsichord. Honorable mentions to the recent Trevor Pinnock recording; Scott Ross; and Ralph Kirkpatrick (clavichord; I haven't been able to find a copy of the harpsichord recording he made).

 

[Rogerx]

Remember Captain it s personnel choice.

 

[premont]

There was an orchestral version of the Art of Fugue many years ago by Karl Ristenpart with the Chamber Orchestra of the Saar (Nonesuch Records - OOP, I think) which was pretty good. Just as an aside, the recording of the Brandenburg Concertos by the same orchestra and conductor is still one of best, to my mind. Done with a lot of top-notch soloists.

The Ristenpart AoF released on LP by Nonesuch has been re-released on CD by Accord, see below..

A few years before the Nonesuch recording, Ristenpart made another - or rather first - recording of the AoF - also with the Chamber Orchestra of the Saar - for Erato featuring among others Helmut Winschermann, Henning Troog and Robert Veyron-Lacroix. This is less romantic in conception than the Nonesuch recording.

Concerning the Brandenburg concerto recording you refer to (Ristenpart's second Brandenburg concertos set) I agree that this is one of the most delightful sets in existence played with modern instruments. It's released in the same Accord CD set.

Bach : Oeuvres pour orchestre : Ristenpart, Karl, Bach, Johann Sebastian: Amazon.fr: CD et Vinyles}

 

[premont]

Remember Captain it s personnel choice.

You share the fondness for this recording with Pugg's ghost and me.

 

[premont]

Walcha also recorded an earlier cycle of the Bach organ works in mono, for Archiv Produktion, between 1947 and 1952, which I also recommend. It has more colorful registrations (being on historical instruments that survived the Second World War; one in Lübeck and the other in Kappel) but the same style of playing.

Historical instruments, yes, but not (yet) properly scientifically restored at the recording time, eg. equally tuned.

 

[shiptontense]

The Goldberg Variations is my fav

 

[EvaBaron]

I still have to hear much more of Bach, and haven’t heard most of his masterpieces. But I’ve already picked out the recordings for the pieces that I’m going to listen to.

 

[thejewk]

Pieter-Jan Belder - WTC
Stefano Molardi - Complete Organ Works, particularly the Trio Sonatas
Jaap Ter Linden - Cello Suites
Gardiner's traversal of the Cantatas
Wentz and Borgstede - Musical Offering

 

[starthrower]

I gave this one a listen last night. Wonderful playing and beautifully recorded. Really amazing for such a young musician.

 

[Marcos]

Göran Söllscher playing the Lute Suites on his 11 string guitar.

 

[RandallPeterListens]

The Ristenpart AoF released on LP by Nonesuch has been re-released on CD by Accord, see below..

A few years before the Nonesuch recording, Ristenpart made another - or rather first - recording of the AoF - also with the Chamber Orchestra of the Saar - for Erato featuring among others Helmut Winschermann, Henning Troog and Robert Veyron-Lacroix. This is less romantic in conception than the Nonesuch recording.

Concerning the Brandenburg concerto recording you refer to (Ristenpart's second Brandenburg concertos set) I agree that this is one of the most delightful sets in existence played with modern instruments. It's released in the same Accord CD set.

Bach : Oeuvres pour orchestre : Ristenpart, Karl, Bach, Johann Sebastian: Amazon.fr: CD et Vinyles}

Thanks! Did not know this info. I have the Ristenpart 2nd set of the Brandenburgs on LP. If memory serves, this featured Maurice Andre, trumpet, J-P Rampal, flute, Pierre Pierlot, oboe, and a violinist named Georg Friedrich Hendel (great name for a baroque performer!). Never really heard of him before or since but his performance in this set was very, very good. As to the whole period instrument business, as long as performers play as close to the musical performance standards of the time a piece was written, modern instruments don't bother me at all.

 

[Brahmsianhorn]

 

[premont]

Thanks! Did not know this info. I have the Ristenpart 2nd set of the Brandenburgs on LP. If memory serves, this featured Maurice Andre, trumpet, J-P Rampal, flute, Pierre Pierlot, oboe, and a violinist named Georg Friedrich Hendel (great name for a baroque performer!). Never really heard of him before or since but his performance in this set was very, very good. As to the whole period instrument business, as long as performers play as close to the musical performance standards of the time a piece was written, modern instruments don't bother me at all.

The trumpeter was Helmut Schneidewind, but he doesn't leave anything to André.

Georg Friedrich Hendel was the leader of the Saar Chamber orchestra for about 15 years. His wife, Betty Hindrichs, was the orchestra's principal cellist. Both were killed in a motor accident around 1970. Hendel made many recordings with the orchestra.

 

[larold]

 

[Alinde]

Harnoncourt and Leonhardt - Das Kantatenwerk

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bach_cantatas_(Teldec)

 

[Coach G]

My Favorite Bach Albums:

1. The St. John Passion by Benjamin Britten and friends (English Translation)

2. The St. Matthew Passion by Leonard Bernstein, New York Philhamonic, et. al. (Abridged, English Translation)

3-5 4 Orchestral Suites; 6 Brandenburg Concertos, by Pablo Casals and the Marlboro Festival Orchestra

6. Bach/Stokowski transcriptions

7. Yehudi Menuhin plays Bach (just for the Chaconne)

8. Bach/Segovia transcriptions (and another amazing Chaconne!)

9-10. And, of course, Glenn Gould

 

[Coach G]

I forgot about the wonderful Cello Suites featuring (arguably) the world's greatest cello player: Yo-Yo Ma)

 

[Waehnen]

Bach is something wonderful. I grew up playing countless keyboard pieces by Bach, so his music is one of the main layers forming my musicality. I have always felt that there is nothing emphatically conservative about Bach -- he was modern, he was timeless, he had the wit to break through the everyday buzz like nobody´s business, he was the pinnacle of baroque... Everything.

The other day my famous Random Play gave me the last movement of the A minor Violin Concerto. I felt all the anxiety created by the hectic modern world melt inside me. It was just beautiful and gorgeous.

Some might even argue this guy was an absolute genius.

My two favourite Bach recordings are probably these two:

The music is SO GOOD.