Johann Sebastian Bach(1685-1750)
          Works for Organ

Prelude & Fugue in B minor BWV 544
Prelude & Fugue in E minor BWV 548
Trio Sonata No. 2 in C minor BWV 526
Chorale Settings BWV 654, 667, 669, 670, 671, 675, 677

Motette 12701 - Recorded May 2000
Silbermann Organs in the Freiberger Dom
Dietrich Wagler, Organ
TT 73:56

Don's Conclusion: One of the less rewarding Motette/Bach discs

Motette has issued many Bach organ discs over the years, and this Wagler
disc is the most recent.  I should note that I left out of the program the
first and last tracks which consist of the sounding of the peal of the
bells of St.  Marien Cathedral at Freiberg.  Some folks likely will find
these two tracks rewarding; I'm not in that category.  I just hear it as
seven wasted minutes out of the total of seventy-four.

Dietrich Wagler, born in 1940, has made a number of recordings for Motette.
Since 1986, he has been Choir Director, Organist, and Church Music Director
at the Cathedral of Freiberg; therefore, he is quite intimate with the
instruments and acoustics.

Intimate or not, this disc doesn't have much going for it.  What do you
look for in Bach organ recordings? Diverse and interesting registrations?
They're not here.  High levels of poetry? Forget it.  Much strength,
stature, and momentum? Hard to find.  Wide range of expression? Dream on.
'Average' pretty much sums up Wagler's performances.  For every work
excepting for BWV 667, I already have plenty of alternative recordings
which are as good or much better.  That Wagler can sound so average on a
Silbermann organ is squarely on his shoulders, for there are a few times
when he brings the instrument to life.  Overall, this recording can safely
be passed by.

Below are my musings about Wagler's performances as I listened to his disc
and some comparisons:

Prelude & Fugue in B minor, BWV 544 - This work is from Bach's full
maturity while at Leipzig.  The music is very powerful, emotionally deep,
and particularly complex in the Prelude.  With a great performance, the
listener will either be emotionally exhilarated or exhausted at the
conclusion; strong impact is guaranteed.  This is the case with the
exhilarating version from Lionel Rogg on Harmonia Mundi and the exhausting
Martin Lucker on Hanssler.  Rogg's rhythmic energy is tremendous, and
Lucker displays a strength which is awesome.  Wolfgang Rubsam on Naxos is
quite powerful *and* thought-provoking.  For a softer and more immediately
optimistic reading, Christopher Herrick is a fine choice.

Mr.  Wagler is quite disappointing in BWV 544.  He's a long way off from
having Rogg's vitality, Lucker's power, Rubsam's intellect, or Herrick's
gentleness.  The performance is in the 'amorphous' category; rhythmic
pulse is rather indistinct, and all other factors are ordinary.  Another
bothersome aspect concerns the Silbermann organs which tend to have a
distictive and interesting sound.  You wouldn't know it at all from
Wagler's reading.  In his hands, the organ just sounds like so many others
of the usual characteristics.

Prelude & Fugue in E minor, BWV 548 - Just within the past week I reviewed
the Michael Murray version of BWV 548 and concluded that it was the least
attractive reading I have ever heard.  Dietrich Wagler is a substantial
improvement on Murray's performance since it is a lively interpretation.
However, Wagler's poetry is rather low and doesn't come close to matching
the power and poetry of Herrick's performance on Hyperion.  Wagler is
better here than in BWV 544, but there's nothing in the performance which
is memorable.

Trio Sonata No.  2 in C minor, BWV 526 - Some excellent recorded
performances include Otto on Berlin Classics, Lionel Rogg, Werner Jacob
on EMI, and Joan Lippincott on Gothic.  Wagler at no time approaches the
quality of these fine versions.  He is rather light in the first and third
movements, and his middle movement does not fully capture the beauty or
depth of the music.  However, this trio sonata has an intimate nature,
and Wagler's performance does have an intimate atmosphere to it.

Leipzig Chorales BWV 654 & 667 - BWV 654 has a smooth and leisurely
Sarabande rhythm and is filled with hope and peace.  Slower versions of
eight minutes or more have to be sure to remain vital and not take on a
somber atmosphere.  Quick performances of seven minutes or under need to
insure that a strong foundation and lyricism are maintained.

For BWV 654, I've only heard one version that's not very agreeable with
me - Hans Fagius on BIS.  Fagius is quick and tends to pull out of the
leisurely and smooth flow, delivering a little chop to the proceedings.
His foundation is weak and lyricism in short supply.  One of my favorite
versions, Bine Katrine Bryndorf on Hanssler is even faster than Fagius but
a glorious listening experience.  She maintains the smooth Sarabande rhythm
and seems to be constantly striving for peace and comfort.  For a slow
version, Ton Koopman on Teldec can't be beat; his performance is gorgeous
and thoroughly inspiring.

Wagler plays it very safe with a tempo which is about as average as
possible.  His foundation and lyricism are fine.  However, there are
many recorded versions which fill the bill as well as Wagler; there's not
anything memorable to report.  It's a fine and professional performance
short on conveying the emotional themes of the music.  I'd clap my hands
if Wagler was playing live in my home; with a pile of other recordings for
comparison, he's just somewhere in the stack.

BWV 667 is rousing music similar to BWV 651, the first chorale in the
Leipzig set, in conveying to me an explosion of life's energy and spirit.
I look for intense exuberance although it can certainly be on the subtle
side; 'low' won't cut it.  As good as Bryndorf is in BWV 654, that's how
far off the mark she is with BWV 667.  She doesn't lift off at all,
sounding rather stern.  Lionel Rogg is fantastic; loaded with stature and
an infectious rhythmic pulse, he makes the music soar.  Wagler's relatively
slow tempo is similar to Rogg's and the performance every bit as rewarding.
Wagler really awakens for this piece.  He applies an irresitable bounce to
the first section and is always stretching for the pinnacle.  His organ
finally sounds distinctive, and the overall effect on me is supremely
uplifting.

The remaining five chorales are from Bach's German Organ Mass.  They are
wonderful creations with extremely high standards set by Lionel Rogg and
particularly Masaaki Suzuki.

BWV 669, 670, and 671 constitute a liturgical and musically logical set
from the German Organ Mass.  With each successive prelude, the music is
more intense, inevitable, and uplifting.  Wagler does well with BWV 669 but
then sounds downright stodgy in BWV 670 - progression is lost.  However,
Wagler does come back with strength in BWV 671 although the inevitability
is missing in action.  Overall, it's not a highly worthy performance.

BWV 675, 676, and 677 also constitute a set.  By omitting BWV 676, I feel
that Wagler breaks the music's continuity.  That consideration aside, his
interpretations are very good.  He plays BWV 675 slowly and with great
accenting and bounce for the tempo.  Although Wagler's BWV 677 is a fine
account, nobody can touch Suzuki for giving a majestic reading that's the
finest one minute of music I ever heard.

Well, I end my listening experience raving about Suzuki and having little
remaining interest in Wagler.  How he rises to the occasion in BWV 667 is
a mystery.  Perhaps it was an infusion of Gatorade.  Whatever it was, he
didn't partake of it nearly long enough for me to be able to recommend his
new Motette recording.  For those who love bells, the disc might have more
to offer.

Don Satz
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