Ron Chaplin wrote:

>I'm wondering if any List members have an opinion about what is gained
>and/or what is lost when works for the harpsichord are performed on piano.

I'm not strong on authenticity for its own sake.  I am strong on the
imagery I receive from performances.  Although I do prefer in the abstract
the sound of a piano and don't hesitate to buy piano versions of baroque
keyboard works, the piano versions usually don't take me back to the time
period of the composer.  But, harpsichord versions do that quite easily,
and that's a nice effect.

What's to be gained from piano versions? There's a greater variety of sound
and the capability of a smoother legato.  The imagery I receive from piano
versions of baroque keyboard works tends to be much more varied in emotions
and the time periods I conjure up are all over the place.  But, when I want
to go back in time and hang out with the wenches of the period, I go for
the harpsichord.  I like to imagine that I'm Tom Jones (from the book and
movie).

>If I have the works performed on piano, do I owe it to myself to get
>the same recordings performed on harpsichord?

I think you owe it to yourself to give it a shot.  Assuming that Ron does
not have any harpsichord recordings of baroque works, I would suggest a few
recordings to find the answer to the question.  If Ron were to get, say,
Hantai on Opus 111 for the Goldberg Variations, Gilbert on Archiv for The
Art of Fugue, and Leonhardt on DHM for the Well-Tempered Clavier, and he
did not care much for those cds, he could safely conclude, for now, that
the piano is the way to go.

Overall, I'm an advocate of both the piano and the harpsichord.  Give the
harpsichord a try, Ron.  Maybe we'll hook up in our fantasies and plunder
together.  I don't mind sharing.

Don Satz
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