Evgeni Koroliov takes many of his tempo and articulation cues from Glenn Gould’s influential 1981 Goldbergs, from the unbridled virtuosity of the cross-handed movements to the severe and stark minor-key 15th and 25th variations. Yet Koroliov is very much his own man. Unlike Gould, Koroliov opts for all the repeats, save for the Aria da Capo reprise. Ornamentation is well-considered, yet relatively conservative in comparison with Andras Schiff’s extroverted creativity, although Koroliov does take the canon at the sixth repeats up an octave. At 84 minutes, this fine performance requires two discs and more shelf space than the aforementioned Schiff. The excellent, detailed annotations, though, make this entry in Hänssler’s complete Bach edition well worth considering.
