The primary challenge for pianists taking on Bach’s Goldberg Variations is to bring off the composer’s two-manual harpsichord effects within the concert grand’s single-keyboard compass. Zhu Xiao-Mei’s ambidextrous agility enables her to maintain finger and hand independence as she gaily sprints through the cross-handed variations. And some of the movements emerge with unusual clarity, particularly the difficult-to-voice canon at the unison (Variation 3) and the knotty, contrary motion canon at the fourth (Variation 12). On the other hand, the pianist graces the more introspective variations with expressive devices that seem less purposeful than mannered. Many of the quick variations slow down as they proceed. Even the moderately paced canon at the octave (Variation 24) drags as a result of this habit. Regarding repeats, Zhu takes those for nearly all the “A” sections, but plays the “B” sections through once. This results in a rather lopsided view of the work’s architecture. In sum, Zhu Xiao-Mei’s Goldbergs sport unquestionably impressive moments but ultimately yield to the benchmark versions by Gould, Schiff, and Perahia.
