Glenn Gould - Bach: Partitas Nos. 5 & 6 (2015 Remastered Version) (2015) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

01. Partita No. 5 in G Major, BWV 829: I. Praeambulum (2015 Remastered Version)
02. Partita No. 5 in G Major, BWV 829: II. Allemande (2015 Remastered Version)
03. Partita No. 5 in G Major, BWV 829: III. Courante (2015 Remastered Version)
04. Partita No. 5 in G Major, BWV 829: IV. Sarabande (2015 Remastered Version)
05. Partita No. 5 in G Major, BWV 829: V. Tempo di Minuetto (2015 Remastered Version)
06. Partita No. 5 in G Major, BWV 829: VI. Passepied (2015 Remastered Version)
07. Partita No. 5 in G Major, BWV 829: VII. Gigue (2015 Remastered Version)
08. The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II: Fugue in F-Sharp Minor, BWV 883 (2015 Remastered Version)
09. The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II: Fugue in E Major, BWV 878 (2015 Remastered Version)
10. Partita No. 6 in E Minor, BWV 830: I. Toccata (2015 Remastered Version)
11. Partita No. 6 in E Minor, BWV 830: II. Allemande (2015 Remastered Version)
12. Partita No. 6 in E Minor, BWV 830: III. Courante (2015 Remastered Version)
13. Partita No. 6 in E Minor, BWV 830: IV. Air (2015 Remastered Version)
14. Partita No. 6 in E Minor, BWV 830: V. Sarabande (2015 Remastered Version)
15. Partita No. 6 in E Minor, BWV 830: VI. Tempo di Gavotta (2015 Remastered Version)
16. Partita No. 6 in E Minor, BWV 830: VII. Gigue (2015 Remastered Version)

Oddly, Glenn Gould recorded Bach's Fifth and Sixth partitas in 1957, two years before he recorded the First and Second partitas in 1959 and five years before he recorded the Third and Fourth partitas in 1962. Who knows why he chose to record them in that order, but these 1957 recordings are every bit as willfully individualistic as Gould's later performances. His touch is staccato, his tone secco, his tempos severe, his textures transparent, his phrasing angular, and his interpretations all his own. Take the questing Toccata that opens the E minor Partita with its abrupt transitions, or the choppy Courante with its sudden sforzandos, or the ghostly Sarabande with its errant ornaments. Though like no other recorded performances, Gould's partitas deserve to be heard not just by fans of the performer but also by anyone interested in the composer. The inclusion of the fugues in F sharp minor and E major from Book Two of the Well-Tempered Clavier as an interlude between the two partitas is unusual, and remarkably refreshing.
Recorded mostly in monaural in two days in the early summer of 1957, Columbia's sound is a tad distant but clean and honest. It must be added here that while Gould's unstoppable vocalizations are less audible here than in later recordings, they may still prove too audible for some listeners.

DOWNLOAD ALBUM [flac]

DOWNLOAD ALBUM [Hi-Res]