This recording documents a live performance made on October 30, 2001 in Basel, Switzerland, and as might be expected from a Bach player of Schiff’s distinction, it’s excellent for the most part. That said, the first half of the work goes better than the second. Schiff’s flowing, unaffected pacing of the opening Aria sounds just about perfect, and he launches the variations with an extraordinary forward impetus, a swagger even. He’s dazzling in such places as Variation No. 8, where his ability to lead the ear through Bach’s contrapuntal thickets, varying the emphasis on the repeats (all of which he observes), pays huge dividends. At some moments, such as the canon at the fourth, he has a slight tendency to poke at the music to draw attention to certain voices or rhythmic quirks, but this never checks the onward rush of Bach’s inexhaustible inspiration.
After a brilliant second-half opening Overture, however, some problems creep in. The next group of variations, though beautifully played, lack sufficient differentiation in terms of dynamics or articulation; but by the time we reach the canon at the seventh Schiff is back on form, reveling in its harmonic boldness. However, the great Adagio (Variation No. 25) proves disappointing, lacking both dynamic variety and a truly smooth legato. In his entertaining booklet notes, Schiff asks (rhetorically, we hope) regarding performance of this mammoth work on the piano: “…hand on heart, can you listen to a harpsichord for that long?” How odd, then, that in this of all places he disdains precisely those timbral advantages that the piano enjoys at its older cousin’s expense. Other listeners may enjoy Schiff’s comparative austerity here more than I did. From this point on, however, Schiff builds the work to an increasingly brilliant conclusion, spilling over into a Quodlibet a touch too quick (a bit more rustic deliberation suits the tunes better) but unquestionably the logical resolution of what has come before.
Listeners familiar with Schiff’s first recording of this piece for Decca will of course want to know if this newcomer is “better”–and the answer to that is, frustratingly, “it depends.” There’s little question that Schiff has refined his view of the music in terms of detail, and the excitement of the live event certainly carries over (along with a small amount of audience and performance noise, never seriously distracting). On the other hand, the Decca recording offers a greater level of consistency at little or no cost in terms of urgency, and I think it projects the work more strongly as a whole. By any measure, both are generally excellent, as are ECM’s sonics. So despite some small reservations, it’s impossible to deny Schiff’s commanding stature as a Bach pianist or his ability to shape this music exactly as it pleases him. Chances are he will please you as well. [11/7/2003]
