Markus Becker’s solid, intelligent musicianship and considerable technical prowess operate at a high level throughout the Goldberg Variations. He commands a beautifully rounded yet virile tone and shapes Bach’s contrapuntal lines in a manner that bridges Glenn Gould’s black-and-white contrapuntal rigor with Daniel Barenboim’s fondness for dabs of pedal and pianistically-oriented dynamic graditions. Like Murray Perahia and András Schiff, Becker observes all the repeats (save for the Aria Da Capo) but does little in the way of ornamentation.
The repeats often provide an opportunity for Becker to shift emphasis from one line or one hand to another. What’s missing, though, is the interpretive diversity and largeness of vision needed to point up the work’s diverse characters and moods, notwithstanding superb renditions of individual movements. These include a joyous and jazzy canon at the sixth, plus an oddly affecting blend of severity and warmth in select minor key variations; but elsewhere a certain general expressive blandness prevails. You can’t deny Becker’s seriousness of purpose and fine workmanship, but when I want to be both moved and entertained by this great work on the piano, I will return to the reference versions.
