Prelude & Fugue in E major - I think this Prelude is one of Bach's greatest
creations; its joy, spiritual uplifting, beauty, subtlety, and seamless
momentum make it a magical work.  Gulda gives a perfect reading, and I
wish any other artist all the best in trying to approach perfection.  Levin
and Martins hardly merit adequacy.  Levin uses the organ; it doesn't sound
right for this music, and the registrations are not to my liking.  Also,
he is too fast and superficial.  Martins is quite slow and plodding; once
again, he slows down the tempo at the wrong times.  Jarrett's performance
is very good; it's not particularly deep but has that seamless flow working
full-time.

Next is a four-part fugue very much in the tradition of the 1600's.  It's
a serious and glorious fugue with a series of descending chords toward the
end of the piece which I always find wonderful listening.  In my original
reviews, I found all the versions highly rewarding with none of them of
magical quality.  The three additional versions do not change the mix.
Levin (on organ) and Jarrett give fine performances.  Martins is even
better with a slow and incisive reading; his only failing is some key
banging just before the series of descending chords.  I wouldn't say that
Martins is the best of the 14 versions, but he's toward the top.

Prelude & Fugue in E minor - I'm still looking for an exceptional
performance of this prelude which is a two part invention.  That level
performance has to know just when to emphasize the tension and poetry in
the music.  Surprisingly, Martins races through the piece with sufficient
tension but little poetry.  The quality of his reading and the skipping of
both repeats make Martin's version a non-starter.  Jarrett is competitive
with fine momentum but a rather superfical interpretation.  Levin, on
fortepiano, is as quick as Martins and has the same problem with the
poetic aspects; however, you couldn't ask for better tension.

In the past, I've seen the E minor Fugue as a somewhat demonic and highly
energetic piece.  Aldwell's version has been my standard, but that spot is
now taken by Jarrett.  His performance, although low on demonic expression,
is perpetual motion with fantastic pacing and accenting.  Jarrett almost
makes me want to dance, and if you knew me well, you'd realize that happens
very infrequently.  There's nothing wrong with the Martins and Levin
interpretations; they just are in the middle of the pack.

Prelude & Fugue in F major - Joy, beauty, and tension are the key
ingredients of the Prelude.  Tureck's is the one version that has all three
elements perfectly conveyed and balanced.  The three additional versions
aren't far behind her, but none can match the tension Tureck provides.
Levin uses the clavichord, and it is well suited to the music.  Martins is
very slow and delivers a great and tasteful performance.  Jarrett has that
nice pacing of his with fine tension.

A lively gigue-like fugue follows which is outgoing and joyful.  I've been
enjoying Schepkin lately who is fast and highly poetic.  Martins is also
fast, but the poetry and joy are low.  Jarrett and Levin are much better,
though not at Schpkin's level.  Jarrett uses a slow tempo, but it doesn't
reduce the outgoing nature of the music.  Levin is fast and exciting,
although I'm still not enamored of his clavichord.

Prelude & Fugue in F minor - This Prelude is majestic and inhabits its own
world.  Tureck, Fischer, and Gulda take me there; the three versions being
reviewed do not.  Jarrett makes two miscalculations:  he gives the music
a "happy-go-lucky" atmosphere, and he places a strong emphasis on forward
momentum.  Both decisions tend to rob the fugue of its majesty and depth.
Levin (fortepiano) and Martins are much better but don't possess the magic
of my three favorite versions.

Gulda is my standard for the F minor Fugue; he's slow, examines every note,
and brings out every nuance.  Martins, Levin, and Jarrett are each much
faster and impact me much less.  However, Levin and Jarrett give vibrant
performances; Martins is a little wooden.

Prelude & Fugue in F sharp major - I prefer the Prelude relatively slow and
spacious; Tureck fits the bill beautifully, and so does Martin who is even
slower.  Levin and Jarrett are no better or worse than most other versions
which use a fast tempo.

The Fugue in F sharp major is a masterful gavotte emphasizing tension,
angularity, and counterpoint.  I have found Tureck, Hewitt, Nikolayeva,
and Fischer to give outstanding performances, and they remain undisturbed.
Levin and Jarrett are not competitive.  Jarrett smooths over the music,
completely destroying any angularity and significantly downplaying the
counterpoint.  Levin is so fast that he misses most of the music's nuances.
Martins does well with a slow tempo although he's well below the level of
the best versions; some pronounced note banging is a detriment.

Prelude & Fugue in F sharp minor - The Prelude is sad, tense, and
beautiful.  There are many excellent versions; Fischer's is a great
one for a quick tempo, and Gould is as good as it gets for a slow tempo.
Martins and Levin are impressive.  Martins is slow and as fine as Gould
except that Gould's ending is magical.  I very much like Levin's use of
the clavichord for this prelude; it brings out the tension and sadness
wonderfully.  Jarrett is not competitive; he doesn't make sufficient
adjustment to the music's angularity and is too surfaced-based.

The three-part fugue has great depth and haunting beauty; Gulda gives a
magical and panoramic reading.  Martins and Jarrett aren't at that level,
but each provides a quick and attractive performance lacking some depth.
I don't appreciate Levin's reading; it emphasizes the playfulness in the
music, and I think that the piece becomes somewhat trivialized.

Prelude & Fugue in G major - The prelude has a delicious mix of
lyricism/gentleness and a sense of foreboding.  I compared the three new
versions for review with Jando's great performance which beautifully and
dynamically expresses the main themes; the menace in his reading comes
directly from the bass line and you can feel it.  None of the three is
excellent, but they are competitive.  Martins and Jarrett are lacking in
the menace department; Levin, on harpsichord, is menacing right from the
start, but he's a little choppy and his lyricism suffers.  Do listen to
Jando at high volume; that bass line will shoot through your body.

The Fugue is vivacious and joyful, but it also has some drama and edge to
it.  Martins and Jarrett deliver half a loaf as they scrimp on the tension.
Levin has tension from the start, just as he does in the Prelude; my only
complaint is that he speeds up toward the conclusion.  Gulda has been my
standard with a slow pace, emphasis on the counterpoint, and excellent
contrast of the dramatic passages set against the delicate ones.  Levin
isn't as good, but he's not far behind with even better tension than Gulda.
Where Gulda kills Levin is in the projection of the counterpoint.

Prelude & Fugue in G minor - French double dotting gives an heroic and
ceremonial quality to the Prelude.  I have found many versions excellent,
but none has made the music magical for me.  That situation still stands.
Levin and Jarrett, both on harpsichord, are better than most; they are
angular and incisive.  But Martins is extemely slow and does nothing with
it:  no illumination, highlighting of counterpoint, new themes, just
nothing.  I had said that Hewitt's slow version stagnated a little;
Martin's has a comotose quality to it.

The G minor Fugue revolves around theme inversion.  Bernard Roberts on
Nimbus is my standard; he's energetic, highlights the joy in the music
without becoming sweet, and displays a poetic swagger that makes his
reading special to me.  The slow Martins and surprisingly incisive Jarrett
give fine performances, but they don't scale the heights.  Levin is very
fast and exciting.  I'd place him at Robert's level except that I found his
harpsichord a trial to listen to; it sounds as if there's no space at all.

In closing, I'm happy to say to Martins has made considerable improvements
in his performances as the set progresses.  He seems to have greatly
reduced his penchant for changing tempo in slow pieces, and his abundant
mannerisms are being held in check.  Martins is even handling fast tempos
quite well.  There's nothing outstanding going on, but the performances are
increasingly pleasureable.

Don Satz
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