Search - Johann Sebastian Bach, Daniel Yeadon, Richard Egarr :: Johann Sebastian Bach: Gamba Sonatas

Bach's gamba sonatas, not as famous as his solo-cello suites, receive an audaciously imaginative presentation on an 18th-century violoncello piccolo that captures the extraordinary beauties of the music as few others have done (the most intriguing alternative version is by violist Kim Kashkashian and pianist Keith Jarrett on ECM). The resulting flow of music, as if the sonatas and their curious companions (arrangements of other Bach) were one continuous reflection, is hypnotic in its appeal. The lighter, more agile tones of the violoncello piccolo, meanwhile, make what often sounds dense on the modern cello fantastic and poetical by turns. All this musical glory is complemented by a superb recording that captures every interpretive nuance, and absorbing liner notes by the cellist that pose but do not answer the riddles of the extra music. For those who find Wispelwey's brilliant playing addictive, his 16 other CDs for Channel Classics include equally compelling recordings of music by Bach, Beethoven, Haydn, and Vivaldi. --Laurence Vittes