Bach recommendations for a beginner?

Well I have copied and pasted all the recommendations on to three pages of a Pages' (Apple) document.  I think I have a bit of information overload.

Please do not feel ignored if I have not followed your recommendations.  I do not know the correct descriptions/headings for the different types of music from Bach.  I am very green.

As mentioned I have purchased locally both of the St. Matthew and St. John's Passions.  This is a starter.  I have made an eBay purchase from a UK charity site.  Or so they say.  I am very apprehensive of purchasing CD's from eBay overseas.  Though will see what happens.

As for Decca and Amazon.  I will go through all the recommendations on my Pages' document.  Re-read it a number of times and look into the recommend artists.

With respect to Florestans's recommendation.  "I would generally say you could focus on orchestral / concerto (1-3), choral (9-10) or solo instruments (4-8) (keyboard, violin, cello, lute etc.) ".

I think this is good advice when thinking of my interests.  I will listen to Orchestral/Concertos again on iTunes to get an idea.  Though I have found I like stringed instruments.  Piano, I am not sure.  Possibly an overexposure to Liberace when I was young.  Parents!  Though I do enjoy Elton John.

Please feel that you have been listened too and appreciated for your advice.

Paul.

likesmusic posted:

 

And fwiw I think it is an utterly dreadful performance. For a start Glenn Gould sings and moans along with the music extremely irritatingly and intrusively - evidently he is incapable of expressing himself through the piano -,  he doesn't play tall the repeats, and his performance is, well, idiosyncratic, attention seeking, mannered, ungainly ... He was a kind of "bad boy" of piano playing for a while, prodigiously competent technically, he introduced a particular generation of people to Bach, but - despite all the hype in the magazines - there are now just so many better interpreters and performances who let the music do the work. Murray Perahia, Angela Hewitt, Igor Levit, Andras Schiff .. I've recently enjoyed Beatrice Rana joyously young set. But Glenn Gould's set is more about Glenn Gould than it is about Bach. 

(I am now going to be incinerated!)

 

No flames  Absolutely agree about Gould. I actually get a headache  listening to him after a while. Relentless and tiring. For the Goldbergs, you really cannot beat the truly glorious account by Murray Perahia  on Sony- a true desert island disc. 

I fear that recommending either of the passions to the original poster is fraught with danger however - this is not particularly easy music for a beginner (and even my wife, a professional classical guitarist, finds the recitatives to be rather tedious and boring ). For choral. much better to try out something like the Easter Oratorio (great version by Suzuki on BIS) or the Christmas Oratorio (maybe the HIP Dunedin Consort version on Linn). They are a bit easier to swallow for a newby. 

Kevin Richardson posted:

Bach begins and ends with : Hilary Hahn - Bach Concertos

Unfortunately it doesn't end quickly enough for me..........  Try Viktoria Mullova / Mullova Ensemble on Philips (a twofer including 3 partitas). 

Wugged Woy posted:

Kevin Richardson posted:

Bach begins and ends with : Hilary Hahn - Bach Concertos

Unfortunately it doesn't end quickly enough for me..........  Try Viktoria Mullova / Mullova Ensemble on Philips (a twofer including 3 partitas). 

Those partitas happen to be among the most impressive ever committed to disc, and amongst Mullova's few best records. I think her Bach concertos (both recordings, Philips and Onyx) lack a bit of energy - try Alina Ibragimova on Hyperion!

Cheers

EJ

The discussion about certain interpretations is not helping the OP, IMO he asked about essential Bach works. Discussions about interpretations might lead to the notion that if he won't buy the recording from this or that artist he will make a terrible mistake. This is potentially deterring.

Dear fellow contributors, have trust in the power of Bach's oeuvre and that the major labels throughout employ very able artists. The work is more important than its interpretation and will shine through. Source first so to say. My first classical concert was a less than professional rendition of Brahms double concerto by a student orchestra and it still impressed me deeply.

I'd follow Emre's suggestion and recommend the Bach box from Deutsche Grammophon but 50 CDs is still a bit much.

Thank you JFRITZEN, I have a list from Gramophone's Top 10 and I have appreciated all the recommendations to date.  I have made a couple of purchases based on recommendations that had me second guessing myself where two recommendations or critiques would counter each other.  Thank you for mentioning that any recording from a major label will have Bach's composing (if I use the correct words) shine through.

I did purchase a CD for $50 AUD from the UK on eBay.  One gentleman recommended it and another countered.  My wife would have something to say if I spent this amount of money on a dud.  I can now feel comfortable with my purchases from the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) and Decca Classics.   I did not want to use eBay.  Though hopefully these purchases will arrive in one piece.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/350...e=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/351...e=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Warm regards,

Paul.

Gigantor posted:

Thank you JFRITZEN, I have a list from Gramophone's Top 10 and I have appreciated all the recommendations to date.  I have made a couple of purchases based on recommendations that had me second guessing myself where two recommendations or critiques would counter each other.  Thank you for mentioning that any recording from a major label will have Bach's composing (if I use the correct words) shine through.

I did purchase a CD for $50 AUD from the UK on eBay.  One gentleman recommended it and another countered.  My wife would have something to say if I spent this amount of money on a dud.  I can now feel comfortable with my purchases from the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) and Decca Classics.   I did not want to use eBay.  Though hopefully these purchases will arrive in one piece.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/350...e=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/351...e=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Warm regards,

Paul.

Paul, don't worry about counter views - it is only us talking about our 'preferences' (my comment about the rather sweet Ms. Hahn was said with a strong tongue-in-cheek, therefore I added a smiley) .

Both Hahn and Mullova are superlative violinists and you have two  purchases  to treasure 

Now, I urge you - Perahia's Goldbergs  You won't regret 

EJS posted:

Wugged Woy posted:

Kevin Richardson posted:

Bach begins and ends with : Hilary Hahn - Bach Concertos

Unfortunately it doesn't end quickly enough for me..........  Try Viktoria Mullova / Mullova Ensemble on Philips (a twofer including 3 partitas). 

Those partitas happen to be among the most impressive ever committed to disc, and amongst Mullova's few best records. I think her Bach concertos (both recordings, Philips and Onyx) lack a bit of energy - try Alina Ibragimova on Hyperion!

Cheers

EJ

Thanks for the tip, EJS  I have her Bach Sonatas and Partitas disc, which is great, so I will track down your recommendation 

Wugged Woy, I found these two.  Though I have had bad experiences purchasing from the US due to poor package not lasting the distance to Oz.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Bac...ssical-/151222088114

Would my second selection be OK?  It is local:

https://shop.abc.net.au/produc...ia-the-bach-album-cd

Paul.

I am sorry, these are not Perahia's.  Though they came up on the Decca Classics list

http://www.deccaclassics.com/a..._rec&ADD_OTHER=1

Paul.

Hello Monster, I found this.  Though do not know if it is the Onyx label you have mentioned.  There is also a three disc package of this CD plus two others.  Would you recommend the three disc package please?

https://www.amazon.com/Johann-...rtitas/dp/B001SB1KHW

Oops, yes it is Onyx.  Sorry my mistake.

Paul.

Gigantor posted:

Oops, yes it is Onyx.  Sorry my mistake.

Paul.

Sorry for the late reply, Paul. That certainly is the recording I was recommending. Good hunting. Sorry for not supplying a link, but I'm not at home and I'm posting on an iPad that I'm not yet familiar with.

BB

No worries Monster.  My wife has put a ban on my spending at the moment.  I have been bad and purchased it.  It costs $46 AUD shipped to Oz.

My only hope is that they turn up in drips and drabs.

I will be good next week : )

Thanks,

Paul.

Wugged Woy posted:

likesmusic posted:

 

And fwiw I think it is an utterly dreadful performance. For a start Glenn Gould sings and moans along with the music extremely irritatingly and intrusively - evidently he is incapable of expressing himself through the piano -,  he doesn't play tall the repeats, and his performance is, well, idiosyncratic, attention seeking, mannered, ungainly ... He was a kind of "bad boy" of piano playing for a while, prodigiously competent technically, he introduced a particular generation of people to Bach, but - despite all the hype in the magazines - there are now just so many better interpreters and performances who let the music do the work. Murray Perahia, Angela Hewitt, Igor Levit, Andras Schiff .. I've recently enjoyed Beatrice Rana joyously young set. But Glenn Gould's set is more about Glenn Gould than it is about Bach. 

(I am now going to be incinerated!)

 

No flames  Absolutely agree about Gould. I actually get a headache  listening to him after a while. Relentless and tiring. For the Goldbergs, you really cannot beat the truly glorious account by Murray Perahia  on Sony- a true desert island disc. 

I fear that recommending either of the passions to the original poster is fraught with danger however - this is not particularly easy music for a beginner (and even my wife, a professional classical guitarist, finds the recitatives to be rather tedious and boring ). For choral. much better to try out something like the Easter Oratorio (great version by Suzuki on BIS) or the Christmas Oratorio (maybe the HIP Dunedin Consort version on Linn). They are a bit easier to swallow for a newby. 

I absolutely agree with you agreeing with me. Murray Perahia is very special, it is as though the music comes to yo directly, transcendentally, with seemingly any artifice. I was lucky enough to hear him play the Goldbergs live some years ago, I was utterly captured. Listened to his version just recently over Easter - along with the delightful Beatrice Rana, and Andras Schiff - he still get closer than anyone else Imo. Might be worth saying to the o/p that his recordings of the Keyboard Suites with Neville Mariner (some of which I have also heard them play live), are just wonderful - great, enjoyable, good fun, real music making - and the associated album with Brandenburg No 5, The Flute Concerto and the Italian Concerto is  outstanding also - in fact not a bad place to start listening to Bach now I think of it.

*i meant to say without any artifice

Dear Likesmusic,

I have been busy on eBay and Decca Classics in tracking down Gramophone's Top 10.  I have manged to find the first 8.  Some in secondhand condition. As yet I have not purchased any due to their current prices though I do plan to purchase one or two a month.  I did listen to Gould on iTunes and at first I liked it.  Then when I listened for a second time, it is in the dunno basket.

Anyhow, with regards to the regards to the Christmas and Easter Oratorios.  Do any of these come in English?  I do not speak German and was wondering if this would be a hindrance to appreciating these works?

With regards to Murray Perahia, I found these two links

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW...1:g:2c4AAOSw4DJYkuQK

and

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Mur...6:g:hsEAAOSwA29Y50IC

I have not looked for the other artists you have mentioned.  Should I?

I enjoy John Butt's Handel, I find the music invigorating, reflective and because I can understand it as it is in English.  Being Ozzie aged 54, all we/I speak Down Under is Ozstraylan and Kiwi

So far on this forum I have learned five new words, Cantatas, Concertos, Oratorio, Partitas, Sonata.

I am a tradesman expanding his music appreciation.

Warm regards,

Paul.

I found this for St Matthew's Passion, in English.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/offe...f_primeEligible=true

Paul.

St John's Passion in Englash

https://www.amazon.com/gp/offe...f_primeEligible=true

Paul.

With regards to the Mass in B Minor.  Is this sung in Latin?

Silly or not I am more at ease with Latin than I am with German.

Warm regards,

Paul.

Mass in B Minor

http://www.deccaclassics.com/a...=172&ADD_OTHER=1

Paul.

I have this Mass in B minor but there are many other good ones

http://www.deccaclassics.com/au/cat/4155142

And it is sung in Latin as it is a catholic mass following the catholic liturgy (although Bach was Lutheran of course.)

Thank you JFRITZEN, I feel better now for that is the one I have ordered.

Warm regards,

Paul.

'Bach before 7' on BBC Radio 3 at about 6.50am (BST). Can you pick it up on the net?

Chris

Listening now.  It is after 7 : (

Thank you.  Maybe tomorrow.