Suite No. 4 in E flat major, BWV 1010 - The Prelude is very interesting.
It can be looked at as a long musical line interrupted by cadenzas which
I think are quite similar to short fantasias.  The long musical line, at
first blush, sounds like scale playing.  Variety of expression is crucial
for a feeling of monontony not to set in; some versions are not wide in
expression.  The music is majestic and needs to be played assertively; some
versions are relatively soft-centered.  There is a modulating and dramatic
passage in the second half which requires the greatest strength from the
performer; many versions are too weak and some even lose strength.

Schiefen is alone on the lowest level; he sounds as if he's playing
scales, and that's not acceptable.  Better versions, but not particularly
memorable, come from Rostropovich, Bruns, Maisky, Kirshbaum, Dieltiens,
Casals, Sheppard, and Pergamenschikow.  It could well be that Casals is
better than he sounds, but the sound quality of his cello is very harsh.

Bylsma gives a strong performance at average tempo.  Westphal is fast and
strong.  Ma I would have been outstanding except for the loss of strength
in the second half of the Prelude.  Wispelwey starts off with the best
pacing of all the versions, but he later goes soft.  Ter Linden provides a
very nice and introspective reading.  Ma II is the slow version I like
best.

Patricia McCarty, Paolo Beschi, and Pierre Fournier make the music special,
and not just on a sporadic basis such as Bylsma and Wispelwey.  McCarty is
strong and majestic from the start and just keeps getting stronger and more
urgent; then she relaxes some before gaining additional strength.  You can
really feel the energy building up and being released.  For tension and
a sense of serious business going on, McCarty can't be beat.  Also, her
cadenza-type passages are wonderful.  Fournier is aristocratic, assertive,
and very sad at times.  It's the best "straight-up" version I've heard to
date.

Beschi provides me with the most rewarding reading.  His quick pace is
refreshing and still quite powerful and dark.  Like McCarty, Beschi is
great with engergy flows.  Just listen to the swirling of energy at 1'45"
into the piece; it's a stroke of genius.  Also, nobody shows the strength
and wonderfully crisp accenting in the second half that Beschi displays.

The E flat major Allemande is highly agreeable music presented in a
relaxed and conversationally stimulating manner.  Bylsma, Fournier,
Wispelwey, and Dieltiens do well in providing highly lyrical readings,
but they are low on conversation and good examples of being too relaxed
to engage in stimulating interaction.  Pergamenschikow's soundstage is
perfect, but he is also not sufficiently stimulating - too little vertical
projection.  Casals uses too much legato for my taste and there's a
horrible sounding note at 51" into the movement; it wouldn't normally
be a big deal, but in this performance it's what stands out in my mind.
Maisky and McCarty sound quite romantic in tone, and I find it a turn-off;
however, they are certainly conversational and provide a fine variety of
expression.  Ma II is overly subdued in the first subject but does generate
more energy in the second subject.  Ma I has more bounce to it but still is
too subdued.

Westphal takes the fast route at just over three minutes; ter Linden is
in the five minute range.  I feel that Westphal gets nowhere with her
speed; she is jerky and sounds like she wants the conversation to end now.
Surprisingly, I find that Bruns is somewhat mundane and staid in the first
subject.  Kirshbaum's accenting is not crisp and vertical projection is
weak.  Guido Schiefen does not sound good at all: too romantic and
alternately gruff.

The highly rewarding versions are from Rostropovich, Beschi, ter Linden,
and Sheppard.  Swirling notes play a significant role in the E flat major
Allemande and insert an element of confusion into the conversation.  I love
the way Rostropovich spins those swirling notes and makes the confusion an
integral part of the conversation.  Beschi's performance is very strong but
always affable and highly conversational in a satirical manner.  Sheppard's
conversation is more tutorial than on an equal basis; however, the guidance
is always given with kindness.

ter Linden takes first prize by a wide margin.  He is quite slow and
serene in his relaxation.  Yet, projection is consistently strong and
the interaction is very stimulating with the voices taking turns being
assertive and demure.  He has the swirling notes, affable manner, satire,
and kindness in abundance.  It's the contrast of serenity and stimulation
which catapults ter Linden's performance over the others.

The French-style Courante is happy and playful music with a strong degree
of restlessness for contrast; much of the restlessness is provided through
the multiple stops and sharp accenting in the movement.  Three versions are
very soft in the first subject without providing any offsets to the loss of
restlessness: both Ma peformances and ter Linden who also has way too much
legato; ter linden's version is the least attractive of the eighteen.

Schiefen is quite loud and overbearing.  Wispelwey and Westphal are very
fast, generic, and scratchy.  Sheppard is almost as fast as Wispelwey;
she isn't generic, but she is inappropriately romantic at times.  Bruns
projects strongly but sounds very relaxed with low restlessness; this
results in low interest for me.  Fournier and Maisky emphasize the legato
too much for my tastes.  Bylsma and Dieltiens express some fine urgency,
but I find their readings too choppy.

Very good versions include Casals and McCarty.  Casals is incisive, urgent,
restless, noble, and on the slow side.  McCarty is full of joy and high
spirits.  Both Casals and McCarty have their romantic moments.  Excellent
versions come from Beschi, Kirshbaum, and Rostropovich.  Each of them has
fine pacing, good speed, playfulness, and urgency; Rostropovich has a
rather beefy sound, but I adjusted quickly.

Pride of place for the E flat major Courante is bestowed on Boris
Perganmenschikow.  He basically provides all that the other artists do.
What really makes his performance special are some of the most effective
'swells' I've encountered; they remind me of the superb swells in Casal's
G major Sarabande.

The E flat major Sarabande is such gorgeous music that it's easy to just
sit back and take it in without thinking of anything else in the world, not
even any imagery from the music.  I consider it Bach's most beautiful music
from the set of the Cello Suites.  The movement has many multiple stops,
is ever so tranquil, mysterious, noble, and with wonderful counterpoint
between the voices.  Maisky's, Rostropovich's, and Fournier's performances
are fine ones, but their highly romantic cello tone is somewhat of a trial
to listen to.  If the readings were special, I likely wouldn't focus on
that tone; the readings are not special.  Schiefen is his usual over-blown
self, very loud, and carrying a host of romantic affectations; this version
is disposable.  I know I originally said that Guido Schiefen was my
sentimental favorite, but his favor is wearing thin.

Barbara Westphal has one of the fastest performances, but that's not
any problem.  What is problematic is a lack of sufficient weight and a
rather sour cello sound.  McCarty shows that the viola can well provide the
requisite weight with a cello sound that rings out beautifully.  This might
sound like an endorsement of her performance; it isn't.  McCarty is even
more romantic than Maisky or Fournier with affectations and disagreeable
sounding embellishments in abundance.

Tranquility is good for this sarabande, but Ma II shows that there can be
too much of it.  He's either inducing sleep or beefing up on his romantic
nature; "comotose followed by overblown" kills this version.  Another thing
about Ma II's Sarabande is that it's the first track on the second cd.
This doesn't bother me any, but I know plenty of folks who hate it, and I
just wanted them to be forewarned.  Bruns is very quick and rather
superficial with short bow strokes.

Better versions are here.  Pergamenschikow, Kirshbaum, Dieltiens, ter
Linden, and Casals are highly enjoyable.  The outstanding performances come
from Sheppard, Ma I, Wispelwey, Beschi, and Bylsma.  Sheppard is the best
at conveying the music's mystery, Beschi has no peer for examining the
counterpoint, Wispelwey is deliciously tranquil throughout and along with
Ma I delivers the most beautiful performances.  That leaves Bylsma who has
the best pacing and is exceptional in every other area as well; he's my
favorite in the E flat major Sarabande.

The Bourree I/II are next.  Bourree I is very agreeable music with
relatively sharp edges and multiple stops; Bourree II is very short
with a strong droning quality; it is as if it's time to give thought to
whether being so cheerful is realistic.  A version that's upbeat with good
projection, sharp lines, and a thought-provoking second subject wins my
approval.  Every one of the eighteen performances catches the essence of
the music with a fine degree of satisfaction and minimal romanticizing.
This even includes Guido Schiefen who acquits himself well.  Anner Bylsma,
by far, has the fastest verson, and he handles it with technical aplomb.

My preferred performances come from Pergamenschikow and Wispelwey.
Pergamenschikow has an attractive sharpness and quick pace, and his Bourree
II has a delightful and incisive drone; it's a very effective contrast.
Wispelwey isn't as sharp as Pergamenschikow, but his forward momentum is
excellent and the droning is the most effective of all the versions.

The E flat major Gigue provides a rousing conclusion to the Suite.  The
music lends itself very well to a fast, impetuous, urgent, and exciting
experience.  When listening, I have the image of pirates having a great
time at the fire on the shore after supper.  One of them is playing the
music, others are dancing, and the remainder are exuberantly clapping their
hands to the beat.  The music is not well-manicured; it sounds rough.  This
is music for "the people".

Bruns, Westphal, Wispelwey, McCarty, and Beschi are very well-manicured and
smooth to the point of sounding stately.  Sheppard gets it right, but her
cello sounds more than rough; it sounds disagreeable.  Kirshbaum's idea of
when to apply legato and staccato are often at odds with my preferences;
regardless, listening to this version is to experience an overdose of
"smooth".  Maisky presents a host of problems; he's too smooth, stately,
and lacking excitement.  Maisky's worst feature is that he tries to give
excessive depth to the gigue; he's definitely not one of "the people", and
he gives the piece just what it doesn't need.

When Guido applies a "stop", he does it with a vengence.  The best I
can say about this performance is that it's no better than Maisky's.
Ma I starts off in soft-spoken fashion but does eventually become more
demonstrative; his ending is a joke to be enjoyed just once.  Fournier just
does little for me, but I had trouble putting my finger on the reason.
That's because it's an odd one for me - Fournier is too serious.  My
pirates are having a good old time, and I seriously think that the music
was not intended to absorb Fournier's austerity.  Dieltiens is too
soft-toned to generate much excitement.

Very fine versions are contributed by Bylsma, Rostropovich, Casals, and
ter Linden.  Even better are Pergamenschikow and Ma II.  Both are strongly
projected, exciting, and convey great urgency.  I should relate that Ma's
performance is very much an "in your face" one; that's fine with me for
this particular music.  Subtlety is not a factor.

Updates: I enjoyed Beschi and Pergamenschikow the most in the E flat major
Suite.  Beschi was headed toward a fantastic set of performances, but he
did not distinguish himself in the Bourree series or Gigue.  Still, he is
now within striking distance of those few versions I feel have performed
better in the first four suites.  Pergamenschikow performs much better than
in the previous suites, greatly helped by his eschewing most of the
affectations he employed earlier.

On the other end, Schiefen is, as usual the least rewarding version.
What surprises me some is that Maisky isn't significantly better than
Schiefen.  There's no magic from Maisky in the E flat major, but there is
the prevalence of romanticism hanging in the air.  Bruns is disappointing
in the E flat major; he's not really into the music as he was in the
earlier suites, being rather relaxed and detached.  As my son would say,
"he's just being lazy on this one".

The next suite, in C minor, is the second and last suite in the minor key.
McCarty was wonderful in the Suite in D minor but has not been particularly
distinguished in the major key suites.  I'm very interested in finding if
there's a pattern here.

Don Satz
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