All this material has appeared in Sony’s Glenn Gould Edition, along with previous CBS Gould CDs reissued in the late 1980s. The music is repackaged here as it was on the original American LP releases. Each CD is programmed according to the LP’s music sequence, and bundled in a facsimile sleeve complete with front cover art and liner notes. This results in a few editorial incongruities. First, the performance of the E minor Toccata that fills out the disc with Partitas Three and Four turns up again on Toccatas Volume Two. Second, because Gould’s Well-Tempered Clavier Book I came out on three LPs, it gets spread across three CDs here. Yet Book I took up two CDs in the aforementioned Gould Edition. And a 1987 CBS release fit Books I and II on three CDs, with room to spare. One wonders if the customer is really being served. It must be said, however, that Sony’s new transfers have gained in clarity and presence over their CD predecessors, with less tape hiss than before. Gouldians, of course, will want to know about this handsome, sturdy boxed set, replete with bonus CD-ROM programs. But does it give you enough bang for your Bach?
