Bach's Well Tempered Clavier is one of the monuments of classical music.
It can be approached on many levels:  one giant entity, two large books,
a series of 48 groupings of preludes and fugues, and ninety six distinct
musical pieces.  I tend to favor the "96" approach and find the two books
to consititute Bach's greatest musical accomplishment.  Imagine 96 pieces
of music spread over about 4 hours, each piece having its own unique
combination of style and emotions conveyed, each piece being a masterful
representation of music at its finest.

This is where the new Hewitt recording on Hyperion of Book 2 enters the
picture.  I listened to it twice last night, and one overriding thought
kept popping into my mind; Hewitt perfectly captures the emotions of each
prelude and fugue.  It's a stunning performance, and I know of none better.
Recorded sound is excellent as well - typical Hyperion piano sound.

I just have one little reservation.  In the first prelude, I would have
preferred a more extensive legato.  But, given how superbly Hewitt plays
all the other preludes and fugues, this reservation becomes rather trivial.

So, Hewitt, in my opinion, joins Gould, Aldwell, and Martins, in giving
us superb/highly distinctive piano readings of Book 2.  Although Hewitt
gets every emotion right, the one which I think most applies to her
interpretation is "exuberant".  There's a dance-like element that Hewitt
highlights whenever appropriate; I was entranced by it.

Don Satz
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