Toccata in E minor, BWV 914 - The E minor begins with a short introductory
presto to a four-voice double fugue.  Both the Presto and Fugue are
permeated by urgency; the double fugue is particularly memorable music of
great beauty.  Each of the versions is excellent:  Troeger displays the
greatest urgency, Watchorn and Hantai are fast and impatient, and Tilney
conveys an irresistable subtlety of expression.

Gould surpasses these four versions with a slow and stately double fugue.
The urgency is still there, but a strong sense of calming assurance and
even heroism hangs in the air.  Gould's is a majestic reading.

The second prelude is a restless Adagio in the form of a Fantasia; a
fast and invigorating three part Fugue closes out the Toccata.  Tilney is
superb; both his Adagio and Fugue have just the right weight and stature.
His phrasing and detail are real treats.  Watchorn is also exceptional in
the Adagio, but his Fugue does not possess the stature of Tilney's.  There
are times in the Adagio when Hantai sounds as if he's on speed and this
perception continues into the Fugue; I find it damages continuity.  Gould
does well, but I feel he trivializes the Fugue in that he seems to toy with
it.  There are no complaints about Troeger's performance; an incisive
Adagio and exciting Fugue are very rewarding.

Overall, I favor the Gould and Tilney Toccatas in E minor.  Gould's double
fugue is transcendent, and Tilney is excellent throughout.  Watchorn and
Troeger do very well, but Hantai's speed-ups in the Adagio and the Fugue
are not to my liking.

Toccata in G minor, BWV 915 - The first prelude/fugue series begins with
a short and improvisatory Presto leading into an ornamented Adagio.  The
Fugue is an exuberant and youthful Allegro in B flat major which presents
two subjects simultaneously and then inverts the countersubject.  Although
youthful in outlook, the Fugue is also ceremonial and majestic.

'Majesty' well describes the Troeger performance of the B flat major
Fugue; he seems to have this music in his blood.  Watchorn is quite
youthful, but his level of ceremony is substantially lower than Troeger's.
Hantai is wonderfully sharp and incisive in the prelude; his Fugue is
highly staccato, detailed, and crisp with a delicious blend of youth and
ceremony.  Tilney does not possess the incisiveness of Hantai nor the
ceremony of Troeger.  Gould's Presto/Adagio lacks some bite, and his
Fugue doesn't sound very youthful, detailed, or ceremonial.

The second prelude/fugue series of BWV 915 starts with an improvisatory
Adagio leading to a gigue-like four voice fugue with dotted rhythm subject
and flowing countersubject in triplets; the fugue ends with a short
improvisatory presto.  There is some speculation concerning the gigue's
authorship, but I'm firmly in the 'Bach wrote it' camp.  It has all the
earmarkings of Bach maximizing diversity within a narrow frame and well
reflects Bach's use of economy.

Watchorn and Hantai are terrific in the second series; their Adagio and
Presto are incisive, and the Fugue is exciting, eventful in that it well
brings out the variety in the music, and displays some macabre elements.
Gould is fast but nothing more, Troeger's instrument might not be a good
choice for the strong drive of the Fugue, and Tilney uses a slowish tempo
which reduces excitement.

Hantai bows out at this point.  His performances of BWV 913-915 are very
good and display much sharpness, clarity, and incisiveness.  Hantai's
Virgin disc can be strongly recommended; it also includes four infrequently
recorded pieces which are performed excellently.

Toccata in G major, BWV 916 - The G major is essentially in the Italian
concerto form.  The first movement, Presto-Allegro, alternates tutti
passages having a repeated downward scale with solo passages of broken
chords.  The music is loaded with youthful energy, and Watchorn and Tilney
best convey the accumulation and release of that energy.  Their readings
are magnificently fluid while retaining a fine sense of angularity.  Gould
and Troeger are excellent versions; Gould is very fast and some might
consider his interpretations rather eccentric and willful.

The Adagio in E minor is very tender and comforting.  Troeger does not
project much tenderness, Watchorn is little matter-of-fact, and Gould
is very slow and can't quite work his magic on this Adagio.  Tilney
is wonderfully expressive and ornamented - by far the best version.

The final movement fugue features much stretto and also descending
scales which take us back to the first movement.  Gould and particularly
Tilney are excellent.  With Tilney, the music has a constant urgency and
anticipation that keeps hitting the envelope without breaking it.  Overall,
the G major belongs to Tilney and is the highlight of his set of the
Toccatas.

Recommendations:  I much prefer Peter Watchorn's performances to those
by Troeger.  Much of that preference has to do with Troeger's choice of
instrument; I just don't feel that the clavichord matches up well with
the youthful exuberance of the Toccatas.  Watchorn does well throughout
with fluid approaches having angularity when needed; his strength is in
delightfully bringing to center stage the energy and exuberance of the
music.

I wouldn't want to be without Gould's Adagios which I must admit are more
enjoyable than his fast movements; also, the improvisatory movements are
sometimes rather flat.  Tilney is also preferred to Troeger largely based
on his fantastic G major performance; I should caution that I find the
sound of his harpsichord on the thin side.  So, my order of preference is
Watchorn, Gould, Tilney, and Troeger.

Don Satz
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