Search - J.S. Bach, Juilliard Quartet :: Bach: Art of the Fugue

Very good but warrants comparison with other string quartet

Joey Joe Joe Jr. Shabadoo | Boston, MA USA | 02/03/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I have to say I really enjoyed this performance of the Art of Fugue. Tempi are typically fairly slow, and each theme is slightly romanticized, while accents are heavily underscored. Compared to the much more idiomatic reading of the Emerson quartet (which features relatively little to no vibrato), this is a nice change of pace although I would not be without either performance as they each have different strengths and weaknesses. The last fugue is left unfinished here, as is the Emerson's reading; the Delme quartet's version, which is of similar interpretive style to this set (i.e. plenty of vibrato), includes Tovey's completion of the final quadruple fugue. This recording is split on 2 CDs and has a runtime of ~90 minutes, compared to the Emerson/Delme recordings, which both fit on one CD and are in the ~75-80 minute range.

One very interesting thing the Juilliard does is use a custom-made viola of larger size, which allows this mid-range voice to play the notes as written by Bach, rather than transposing the voice up an octave when out of the range of the standard instrument as many other quartets will do. It's a more honest and sensible solution to the problem of playing the work in this format. In contrast, the Delme's approach is to transpose the work to G Minor so that the viola's limitations are neutralized, while the Emersons just use the aforementioned technique of moving the voice up an octave when needed. I prefer the approach of the Juilliard recording to the other two.

Overall a very nice, romantic performance of the work, but I would not recommend it as a be-all-end-all recording. I would recommend listening to the Emerson quartet recording as well for a more historically informed approach, and also the Delme version if you want to hear the final fugue completed.

For those unfamiliar with the work, this work represents the magnum opus of Bach - an essay on the endless possible permutations of one simple musical phrase through the use of counterpoint. It was not scored for any specific instruments, and as such it has been transcribed for all sorts of ensembles. The final fugue, number 21, the longest fugue Bach wrote - which was left unfinished as Bach died prior to its completion - was meant to be a quadruple fugue, i.e. 4 different themes woven together in fugal form, the 3rd theme of which was B-A-C-H (B-flat - A - C - B-natural in German notation), and the 4th which was to be the original theme. You can hear the 3rd theme entering as the fugue trails off in this recording. Recent musicology suggests also that this 21st fugue was not to be the final fugue, and that Bach in fact originally planned for 24 fugues but revised his plans as his health failed. Ah, what might have been.

To the novice - give this recording a listen. If your mind is of a certain bent you will be transfixed and in awe of this composition for the rest of your life. This is a piece of eternity carved from the ether and left for us to ponder and re-examine for all time. The Juilliard do it justice, but get more than one recording as each different one illuminates different details!

For the experienced listener - this is a fine rendition of the work in this format, and the Juilliard's solemn sense of probing reveal new insights, particularly in the final fugue.

Recommended."