Ricercar A 6 - More severe than Ricercar A 3, Ricercar A 6 enlarges the
basic theme with subtle majesty as in a slow alla breve.  The piece has
triple and quadruple counterpoint but no inversions or stretti.

On the DHM recording, Ricercar A 3 was performed on just the harpsichord
and Kohnen was superb.  For A 6, the flute and strings are added, and I do
not care for the results.  Their addition places the interpretation in the
dour category; I wish Kohnen had just been left alone.  On Harmonia Mundi,
it's Moroney alone again on harpsichord; the performance is a good one but
some of the music's beauty is lacking.  Leonhardt's slow harpsichord
performance is excellent; the beauty and depth are in full display.

For Aston Magna, John Gibbons again takes center stage with a solo
fortepiano performance which is well played but rather low on nuance.
Michael Behringer replaces the fortepiano he used for the Ricercar A 3
with the harpsichord for the six part Ricercar.  There's a choppy quality
to his playing which holds the performance back from being excellent.
Although Gary Cooper on harpsichord had the solo honors in the three-part
Ricercar, Ensemble Sonnerie switches to six instruments without any
keyboard inclusion in Ricercar A 6.  The introductory solo for oboe da
caccia is fantastic and majestic; the remainder of the performance is just
as good.  The instrumental variety works wonders with highly effective and
frequent nuances.  As an appendix, the group includes an earlier version
for solo harpsichord performed by Gary Cooper which is at least as fine as
Leonhardt's and much brighter in mood.

Arte Resoluta also takes the multiple instrument approach using flute,
violin, viola, cello, and organ.  They avoid a dour reading through
excellent and strong projection; although not as varied as Ensemble
Sonnerie, Arte Resoluta reaches the level of Leonhardt.  Florilegium
employs recorder, flute, violin, viola, viola da gamba, and organ.
Instrumentation is not as distinct or lovingly presented as in the Arte
Resoluta reading.  Nikolayeva's slow tempo is similar to Leonhardt's with
a much greater degree of dynamic shading.  It's a peformance to luxuriate
in and joins Ensemble Sonnerie as my preferred readings.

"Enigmatic" Canon in two parts - This Canon and the following four part
Canon bear the epigraph "quarerendo congruentiae" which corresponds to
"seek and ye shall find".  The basic royal theme is expanded in various
contrary motions.  Ensemble Sonnerie uses harpsichord, viola da gamba,
bassoon, oboe, and viola.  Their performance begins and ends with a
harpsichord solo which I much prefer to the remainder of the reading.
On Hanssler, Michael Behringer has a fine solo effort on harpsichord;
however, the version is fast and very short.  Kohnen's solo harpsichord
performance on DHM is slower than Behringer's and at the same level; I
do question the degree of legato which is very prevalent.  Arte Resoluta
employs harpsichord, viola, cello, and flute.  I love their use of cello
and flute as they add variety, expressiveness, and impact.  On Harmonia
Mundi, Moroney has another harpsichord solo which is very severe; I would
have preferred a little optimism added to the mix.  Similar comments apply
to Leonhardt's solo version on harpsichord.  Aston Magna uses strings and
flute but to no better advantage than most of the other versions.  For the
Canon in two parts, I'll go with Arte Resoluta.

"Enigmatic" Canon in four parts - Using strings and harpsichord, Arte
Resoluta tends to have muddy and indistinct textures.  The DHM version
on harpsichord and violin is much better; textures are clear and allow
the listener to well hear each of the four parts.  Aston Magna on flute,
violin, and viola da gamba is significantly slower than Arte Resoluta and
the DHM issue; it works wonderfully.  The slower pace makes the music more
thought-provoking, and Aston Magna provides great lyricism.  The Hanssler
issue uses the same instrumentation as Arte Resoluta but without muddy
textures; it's a fine reading at the DHM level.  I don't care much for
the Leonhardt version; it clatters, is extremely busy, and has little
but austerity to offer.  Martha Cook joins Moroney for the Harmonia
Mundi performance; it has good momentum and lyricism.

Ensemble Sonnerie expands geatly on an already strong approach to
variety with three versions of the Canon a 4.  Each has different
instrumentation, and the middle version is in inverted form.  By using
varied instrumentation and placing the inverted version in the middle, the
listener is insured that boredom does not set in.  Each version is very
slow paced, much slower than even Aston Magna.  Although none of the three
versions is better than the Aston Magna, I have to place Ensemble Sonnerie
at the top; each version is highly rewarding, and the inverted one is a
very interesting contrast.

Trio Sonata BWV 1079 - Here we have a four-movement work for flute, violin,
and continuo.  Unlike the other movements of the Musical Offering, these
four movements incorporate the royal theme in a somewhat hidden manner.
The first movement is a Largo where elements of the royal theme are in
the bass line.  The music is melancholy with some uplifting passages; the
comfort element is also strong.  Three versions are a little deficient.
With Arte Resoluta and the Hanssler version, tempos are quick and delivery
rather choppy; comfort is low.  Leonhardt's problem is a subdued approach
to the uplifting passages; the effect is dour.  The other versions are very
rewarding.

The second movement Allegro lifts the mood from the first movement;
the royal theme appears once each in the violin and flute parts, more
frequently from the continuo.  There's a nobility and elegance to the
music that a very fast tempo is likely to mitigate; that's what happens
with Arte Resoluta, Ensemble Sonnerie, and the DHM version.  Another
important consideration is the converation between flute and violin.
Leonhardt and the Harmonia Mundi issues place the flute and violin at
about the same point in the soundstage; this decision tends to blur the
conversation.  Florilegium, Aston Magna, and the Hanssler versions possess
fine nobility and a highly expressive and distinct interplay between flute
and violin.  The fortepiano in the Hanssler performance is very attractive.

The third movement is an Andante with prevalent 'sighs'.  However, a
strong element of optimism runs through the movement.  The first part of
the royal theme is found in both the violin and flute.  The Arte Resoluta
and Leonhardt versions are not very rewarding.  Leonhardt is slow and dour;
Arte Resoluta is quick and dour.  Neither version yields the requisite
optimism.  Although Aston Magna is low on optimism, they replace it with an
irresistable melancholy.  The remaining versions display a fine optimism
that springs off the page from the opening notes.

The last movement Allegro's subject is a variation of the royal theme.
Leonhardt again delivers a dour performance.  Arte Resoluta is not dour
but I detect a lack of unison among the instruments.  The other versions
are excellent with Aston Magna and Ensemble Sonnerie giving performances
which are relatively inward-looking.

Canon Perpetuus - This canon completes the Musical Offering and has
the same instrumentation as the Trio Sonata.  Above a walking bass, the
violin and flute express an ornamentated version of the royal subject in
a contrary motion.  In the second section, the voices of the flute and
violin are inverted and results in a mirror canon.  I consider each of
the versions equally successful except for Aston Magna which provides
a very subdued reading.

Summary for the Musical Offering:

Most of the complete versions are excellent.  Arte Resoluta, Aston Magna,
and Leonhardt have their dour moments, but each version also has many
points of enlightenment.  My little rating model gives the edge to the
Ensemble Sonnerie on Virgin Veritas.  This group performs as well as any of
the others and has a major advantage in variety of instrumentation which,
with little exception, enhances the pleasures of listening.  The major
consideration is that you can't go wrong with purchasing any of them.

Florilegium does very well for what they provide of the Musical Offering
on their recording.  The remainder of their disc consisting of other trio
sonatas is very good as well.  Nikolayeva is superb in the Ricercars; given
that the the remainder her 2-disc set has a wonderful Art of Fugue and
rewarding Four Duets, this set is essential for the Bach collector.

Don Satz
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