Bach's Partitas for Harpsichord were published as a set in 1731.  Each
Partita has six or seven movements, opens with an abstract movement, and
follows with contrasting movements, mostly in traditional dance form which
is strongly ornamented.  An Allemande, Corrente, and Sarabande are common
to all six partitas.

The new set on Hanssler from Trevor Pinnock is part of Hanssler's traversal
of all Bach compositions.  The full sets reviewed are:

Gustav Leonhardt - DHM 77215 (1983).
Schergy Schepkin - Ongaku 108& 109 (1995).
Trevor Pinnock   - Hanssler 92115 (1999).
Rosalyn Tureck   - Philips 456976 (1956/8).
Angela Hewitt    - Hyperion 67191/2 (1996/7).

These additional recordings are also used for comparison:

Maria Joao Pires - No. 1 - DG 447894 (1995).
Maggie Cole      - No. 1 - Virgin 90712 (1988).
Richard Goode    - Nos. 2,4, and 5 - Nonesuch 79483 (1997/8).
Martha Argerich  - No. 2 - DG 423880 (1980).
M. Horszowski    - No. 2 - BBC Vol.1, No. 12 (1983).
M. Horszowski    - No. 2 & 5 - Arbiter 113 (1983/58).
Glenn Gould      - No. 4 - Sony/Odyssey 42527 (1962).
Jeffrey Kahane   - No. 4 - Nonesuch 79121 (1985).

Partita No. 1 in B flat major, BWV 825 - This Partita begins with a
swaying and noble Praeludium in the two-minute range.  Each of the versions
is highly effective and different.  Leonhardt is relatively austere and
aristocratic, Pinnock provides a smooth flow with fine accenting, Schepkin
is very quick and delicate with excellent momentum, Hewitt displays a
strong posture, Pires is elegant/poetic, and Tureck is awash in nobility.
Maggie Cole is my favorite; her performance is strongly straight-foward
with outstanding accenting.

The Allemande, if played fast, becomes an exciting and even thrilling
listening experience.  Hewitt and Schepkin are fast, but the excitement
they provide comes and goes.  Schepkin again displays delicacy, but it does
not fit the music.  Hewitt slows down on occasion.  The other fast versions
are Cole and Pires.  Cole is very exciting with great forward momentum, but
it's the reading of Pires which is special.  She just isn't fast, she's
like "lightning".  The performance is thrilling throughout, but more
significant, she provides the most emotional themes of any version and
makes them stick; the sense of urgency is stunning.  This is a virtuoso
performance.

The slower versions come from Pinnock, Leonhardt, and Tureck; each one
is at Cole's level.  Pinnock gives the most beautiful reading with fine
urgency.  Leonhardt looks inward with a sense of comfort, and Tureck
excellently uses her staccato to weave a musical spell; also, the contrast
between the staccato and legato passages is superb.

The Corrente's joy and contentment leaps off the page.  The music is
also exciting and has an infectious bounce to it.  Three versions are not
satisfying:  Tureck drains the music of excitement, Schepkin's trills are
annoying and he loses zest toward the end, and Pires becomes much too
soft-focused at times.

Cole is the most exciting.  Hewitt excellently contrasts her use of staccato
and legato.  Leonhardt and the smoother flowing Pinnock deliver incisive
readings that are highly rewarding.  Any of these four versions should give
much pleasure.

Next is a lovely Sarabande possessing great stature, dignity, and
tenderness.  How the artist handles the ornamentation and accenting is
of crucial importance.  I can't muster up much enthusiasm for Schepkin,
Pires, or Pinnock.  Schepkin trivializes the music a little through cute
ornamentation and weak accenting; his interpretation is too playful and
lacking weight.  Pires is quite weak on accenting, and most of the urgency
is diluted.  Pinnock just doesn't penetrate me; his style of ornamentation
leaves me cold.  Tureck, Hewitt, Leonhardt, and Cole are excellent.  I
should note that Tureck is at least two mintues slower than any of the
other versions; her reading is very tender and moving.

Menuet I and II follow with some versions also including the Menuet
I da capo.  Menuet I is bouncy and happy-go-lucky music; II is rather
introspective and restrained.  Schepkin does very well by providing a
fine contrast between I and II.  Tureck, much more slowly, also delivers
the bounce and happy mood of Menuet I and the reflection of II; unlike
Schepkin, Tureck plays the da capo although without any significant
variation.  Pinnock uses a quick tempo to display a happy and smooth
flowing Menuet I; his II is attractively delicate, and the da capo has a
clavichord quality to it.  Hewitt is on target with delicious staccato
playing in Menuet I and a fine nobility in II; her da capo is essentially
an exact repeat except for less staccato.  Pires uses much legato in Menuet
I and it works fine, but Menuet II is insufficiently nuanced and sounds
like a run-through.  Her da capo uses a staccato delivery which contrasts
well with the original.  Cole is rather one-dimensional/matter-of-fact in
both Menuet I and II; the da capo does pick up some zest.

Leonhardt proceeds slowly with exquisite accenting and infectious pacing
in Menuet I, and his II is very elegant and calming.  Leonhardt's da capo
is the only one which provides different ornamentation, and it is most
welcome.  Overall, I find Leonhardt the best, Cole and Pires at the bottom,
and the others stacked in between.

A Gigue concludes Partita No. 1, and this one has hand crossing in every
bar with the result that it sounds like melodies are coming at me from
every angle.  The music has many nuances and a generally joyous expression.
Pinnock and Cole insufficiently address the nuances and sound very limited.
Tureck's piano too recessed for much enjoyment (could be sound problem).

The remaining versions are excellent.  Hewitt and Pires are fast and
exciting.  Schepkin is highly expressive and superbly captures the music's
nuances.  Leonhardt is slow paced and best conveys the joy of the piece.

Summary of Partita No. 1:

Of the seven versions, I like Leonhardt the most.  He is excellent in every
movement, displaying a strong command of the idiom.  Although there is a
certain asuterity in his interpretation, that quality is combined with a
deep sense of comfort and inner joy.  His tempos are slow, and recorded
sound is excellent.

Maggie Cole has a very strong performance which is only hampered by her
lackluster Menuet and Gigue; her sound is not as good as Leonhardt's, but
it isn't detrimental.  Hewitt is also very strong except in the Allemande.
Pires has some super moments but many ordinary ones as well.  Tureck's very
good and very slow.  Schepkin started showing his talents in the last two
movements, but the previous ones were problematic.  His is the one version
which is dispensable.

Trevor Pinnock displays a flow which is quite smooth with little
angularity; it reminds me some of Keith Jarrett.  The style can work
beautifully, or it can tend to make the music seem monochromatic.  That
particular problem inflicts Pinnock's Menuet and Gigue.  Overall, the
performance is good, but far from being at Leonhardt's level.  Pinnock
needs to dig deeper into the music.

Don Satz
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