16th Variation - A heroic French Overture with fugue. There are some commanding versions including Gould(81), both Turecks, and Jarrett on ECM. Schirmer is quite heroic in the overture but with too many hesitations; her fugue has no strength and approaches hushed tones. That's an interesting avenue to take, but I feel that much of the fugue's attractiveness comes from its strength. Feltsman also hesitates too much in the overture; his fugue is excellent until the repeat where he again goes to the higher register. Labadie, although using the big string sound, gives a fine performance of heroic proportion which I still feel misses Bach. Rosen joins the 'commanding' group with an overture with a slow tempo similar to the Tureck recordings; he is the height of heroism, and his fugue is powerful and exciting. Pinnock's performance is excellent, but the sound is brittle and busy. 17th Variation - I love this piece for the inherent contrast provided by music which is very precise yet has a strong element of breaking apart. Of course, Bach keeps it all together. Tureck on DG is my favorite version: very slow, detailed, with an exceptional highlighting of contrasts. Schirmer is quite similar to Tureck; in fact, I have to believe that she is very familiar with Tureck's performance. Regardless, it's a wonderful interpretation fully equal to Tureck. Although not as good, Feltsman and Rosen give highly rewarding readings. Pinnock would be in that rewarding category except for skipping both repeats. Labadie is moderately enjoyable, but displays a significant lack of precison or "break-up", sounding like nothing more than a nice day in the park. 18th Variation - Music that radiates joy and satisfaction with an infectious playfulness, all of which is draped in ceremony. Hewitt on Hyperion and Xiao-Mei for Mandala are magical standards to achieve. Ragna Schirmer takes a different approach than the norm; she is very slow, sad, and even melancholy. Playfulness and joy do not enter the picture. Although I very much like her performance, I do think that she leaves out the most rewarding expressive areas of the music. Pinnock gets everything right, but that busy sound is a detriment. Labadie plays the variation as a lullaby; don't listen to this version while lying down. Rosen is surprising demure to the music's detriment. Feltsman is perfect in the first theme, then totally ruins the repeat by moving to a much higher register and substituing his notes for Bach's. Guess what? He does the exact same thing in the second theme as well. Feltsman is doing a great job of sabotaging quite a few of his performances. There isn't any magic in this group. 19th Variation - This is wonderfully joyous music of pristine quality. Schirmer uses a slow pace and a staccato approach. Although that's fine with me, she's also too subdued and sometimes weak with right hand projection. Rosen, like Schirmer, uses a staccato approach, but his performance is fast and too emphatic. Labadie's consort peformance is excellent although he makes the music quite sad and haunting. Pinnock is certainly joyful and pristine, but there's some depth missing; he can't compare to Suzuki's outstanding version on BIS. If Feltsman doesn't come through, I'm going to be in the embarrassing position of declaring Labadie's the best version of the five. Well, it's a draw. Feltsman is even faster than Rosen, but Feltsman is thrilling in the first theme. Unfortunately, he has a couple of speed-ups and awkward phrasing in the second theme. At least he ties Labadie, but neither of them approaches the excellence of Suzuki, Koroliov on Hanssler, Gould(81) or Hewitt. 20th Variation - A fast Courante of pleasing disposition. Murray Perahia's reading is one of the best, providing the excitement of the music without any loss in lyricism; his technical display is also very impressive. Labadie's consort approach is slower than Perahia but nicely done. Feltsman gets a little messy with phrasing, and I don't feel that the piece hangs together well in his hands. Pinnock, Rosen, and Schirmer are every bit as good as Perahia; Schirmer's tempo is a little slower than the others but remains very exciting. 21st Variation - This is my desert island variation, and Gould(81) is a superb piano version to take along. Feltsman is very slow and very good, although at the pace he uses I would have liked stronger accenting at times. Rosen provides the momentum of Gould, but he largely eschews Gould's frequent and short shifts in tempo and dynamics. By doing so, Rosen makes the music less interesting and more restricted in expressiveness. Ragna Schirmer also does not engage in much shifting and achieves the same results as Rosen. Labadie's glossy and big band performance is one I can't take seriously. Verlet is my favorite harpsichord version; she uses an approach similar to Gould although she's not as poignant. Pinnock is much slower than Verlet; he is unfortunately less angular as well. He reminds me some of Feltsman. Gould and Verlet aren't close to being matched by any of these five versions. 22nd Variation - Wonderful and heroic music which Gould and particularly Tureck on Philips deliver beautifully. By contrast, Rosen applies little ceremony or angularity to his interpretation and misses the greatness of the music; his is a good but smoothed-over performance. Feltsman starts off magnificently in the first subject, then applies excessive strength with his left hand to the repeat; he does the same in the second subject. At least he's consistent. Schirmer employs Tureck's slow tempo, but the similarities end there. Her heroism is at a much lower level and she's too soft toned in the first subject; she does improve measureably in the second subject with enhanced vitality. Pinnock supplies a healthy degree of ceremony and angularity, besting the three piano versions. Labadie gives another glossy and unacceptable performance. Tureck gets no effective competition from this grouping. 23rd Variation - Joyful music with a rollercoaster effect. Gould(81) is an excellent version with fast speed and technical command in abundance. Feltsman, although slower, often sounds clumsy with awkward phrasing; I also question some of his embellishments. Labadie is very slow with a consort performance which is pretty good but no more rewarding than Feltsman. Even Rosen catches the clumsy phrasing bug a few times, but he has great forward momentum and the rollercoaster ride is quite exciting. There are no clumsy moments for Schirmer, but her slow tempo excludes any significant excitement; she sounds occasionally staid in the first subject. Pinnock is excellent with complete technical command and a great ride. 24th Variation - It doesn't happen often, but now and then I hear a performance which my brain tells me has much wrong with it but I still can't resist. That's how I feel about Feltsman's performance; it's ridiculously loud in spots, very fast, and sounds sectional. Even so, he possesses a rhythm and bounce that's magic to my ears. Rosen is also exceptional with a very slow tempo and close examination of every note. These two versions rival the best such as Suzuki on BIS and Gould(81). Not far behind are Schirmer and Pinnock; he again skips the repeats. Labadie is still on his "Bach Goes to Hollywood" routine, but I derived some pleasure from his performance. 25th Variation - I have remarked in previous reviews that very slow (9 minutes plus) versions of the Black Pearl tend to go on forever. Feltsman, close to 10 minutes, gives a transcendent interpretation loaded with dynamic shadings and great depth. This might even be better than Tureck's on DG. The other four versions do well. Labadie's consort performance is very interesting; I'd like to hear a different one providing more depth. 26th Variation - An outstanding toccata where the right hand provides the lyricism and the left hand the tension/excitement by a galloping and never-ceasing pulse. Labadie's chamber orhcestra approach is much too syrupy. Rosen is likely too fast, and he plays too softly throughout; this is most damaging to a sensation of the building up of tension in the second subject. Feltsman does well with a dynamic left hand. Pinnock provides one of the best harpsichord versions I've heard. My standard for this music has been Koroliov with the best mix of lyricism and tension of any version; his build-up of tension in the second subject is wonderful. Schirmer now joins him with an exceptional reading which is fast, highly lyrical, and has a build-up of tension equal to Koroliov; her performance delivers a whirlwind of activity. 27th Variation - This is one of Bach's most joyous and best pieces of music. Gould(81) and Tureck(Philips) are outstanding issues, one fast and exhilarating, the other slow and introspective. Schirmer is very good with just a little less vitality than Gould. Feltsman provides the extra vitality missing in Schirmer's performance, but he also gives us some clumsy left hand banging and that higher register delivery. I love Rosen's legato/flow, and the joy in his reading can't help but impact one's mood. His version holds its own with Gould and Tureck. Pinnock, being quick and skipping repeats, is over almost as soon as it starts. Although well played, he's not good enough in this variation to offset the short playing time. Labadie's consort reading is very nice, about at the level of Schirmer. 28th Variation - Another wonderful and joyous variation which, in the hands of Blandine Verlet and Andras Schiff, has magical properties of expressive variety; beams of joy hit me from a multitude of directions. This is also a variation where trills are dominant, and both Verlet and Schiff execute them to perfection. Schirmer sounds great in isolation, but compared to the best, she is too demure with lessened variety. Pinnock's major problem is a fast tempo combined with a sharp harpsichord sound that can approximate a dentist's drill coming your way. Rosen sounds to be in a hurry and sectional, although his variety of expression is admirable. Feltsman again takes to the higher register in the first repeat and shows some awkwardness. But, his pacing and joy are superb, and variety is all encompassing. His version is not at Verlet or Schiff's level, but it's mighty close. The Labadie consort performance is slow and very beautiful, but the spark is low; just listen for its lovely and haunting qualities. 29th Variation - A perfect musical example of how to convey power and tension by hitting the envelope but never breaking it. Pierre Hantai is currently my favorite version; he's quick, highly lyrical, tremendously exciting, and never loses control although it seems inevitable. Labadie's Hollywood reading is very low on every aspect of the variation that I find appealing except for tonal beauty; that appears to be his particular focus. Schirmer largely misses the tension and excitement; nothing is anywhere near the edge; Labadie is preferable. Pinnock is also on the low end with another performance with no repeats which is over so quickly; further, his reading is nothing special. Feltsman is on the right road barrelling toward the edge of it, just not as daring as Hantai. Rosen is a little less daring and tense than Feltsman. 30th Variation - Heroic music which can give the listener the fortitude to conquer any challenge. Lifschitz on Denon gives a slow reading of great ceremony and postive/joyful resolution; it's a favorite of mine. Another favorite is Verlet's more angular reading. Rosen is too smooth with little strength in his accenting; he makes the music into a nice little tune. Pinnock's slow tempo and insufficient tonal beauty is problematic, although he is much more expressive than Rosen. Feltsman and Schirmer are a few steps up from Pinnock with beautiful and heroic readings. Labadie returns to the glossy sound with results that are at Rosen's level. Aria da capo - There are no surprises here. Each performance conveys the same basics from the opening aria, although a few do not observe all repeats as they did in the opening. Conclusions: Labadie's recording is not recommended. This is not an issue of period instruments vs. their modern counterparts. Labadie doesn't sound like a Karajan or Solti; he sounds like tinsel-town. Bach goes to Hollywood. Pinnock, Schirmer, and Rosen are easy to recommend but with some caveats. Rosen has a style which reminds me of Gould, but he's simply not as good. I read a review that indicated that Schirmer did not have an "indentity" in her recording. I think she does have one; it's the search for the beauty in Bach's music, and she does very well in conveying it. Her disadvantage is a premium price for two discs without any additional works. Pinnock's disadvantage is a brittle harpsichord sound in many of the more exuberant variations. That leaves Feltsman who has his share of technical problems and the highest register penchant in repeats. Actually, from the 12th variation on, he is as good as any of the other four artists. Also, he does his best work in the variations of greatest depth. There are a few of his readings I would hate to be without. I can't recommend his recording highly, but his version is the most rewarding of the five. Don Satz [log in to unmask]