Don Satz wrote:

>Excepting for Gould, each version is rewarding and heart-felt but not of
>magical quality.  Gould's performance could be considered a losing one.
>He's much too fast for any reflection, and I can't detect a theme or
>emotion which takes its place; the enjoyment level is low.

I fell in love with Bach while listening to Gould performances.  I had
nothing to compare them to and so I never fussed about speed or volume
(it's difficult for me to buy Bach now because I have become so picky).
After collecting various versions of Bach's keyboard works I have really
lost my taste for the Gould performances.  Only his partitas still get any
playtime on my stereo.  I admit to preferring harpsichord over piano but I
can enjoy any performance if it speaks to me.  Once I heard a performance
of the B-flat partita on guitar and I loved it.  I guess what I am trying
to say is that I really don't understand why Gould used the tempos he often
used with Bach.  Not long ago I heard the first two English Suites played
back-to-back on the local classical station and was immensely disappointed
to find out it was Glenn Gould tearing through them like hell.  I admire
his talent but really do not understand where he was coming from when
selecting his tempo.

Wes Crone