BACH: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II, BWV 870-893 – Richard Egarr, harpsichord – Harmonia mundi HMU 907433.34 (2 discs), 79:53; 81:16 ***1/2:
Though a world first, as Richard Egarr says in his notes, Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier did have some forerunners. But the scope of Bach’s work, which ran through all available major and minor keys, was unprecedented when it appeared in 1722. That was still the case when Bach issued Book II, named by him simply Twenty-Four Preludes and Fugues, in 1744 after he had moved from Köthen to Leipzig to serve as cantor of the Thomaskirche.
Egarr speculates Bach formulated the idea of a second book toward the end of the 1730s, given that he had amassed a great deal of material which could be channeled into the pedagogical aims of a work such as the Well-Tempered Clavier. Further, Egarr notes a significant difference between Book I and II. He finds that while Book I seems to flow from one set of preludes and fugues to the next, the pieces in Book II “appear like separate scenes or stories in their own worlds,” and a part of the reason is the inclusion of a number of preludes (ten out of the twenty-four) in binary form. As Egarr explains, these binary-form preludes are not simple dance movements but complex pieces in the manner of Scarlatti’s harpsichord sonatas, and their inclusion “gives a slight overall feeling of inertia to Bach’s ‘sequel’. . . .”
Such a statement leads a listener to wonder about the chicken-and-egg relationship between the feeling of inertia in Egarr’s playing and his scholarly assessment of Bach’s music. That is, did Egarr’s scholarly judgment color his playing to such an extent that he approached the music in a more leisurely and caressing manner than just about any performer—on harpsichord, clavichord, or piano—you can name? I suppose one would have to compare Egarr’s recording of Book II with his earlier recording of Book I, which I haven’t been able to do. However, from critical reactions to that earlier recording, it’s probably the case that what you hear in Book II is pretty much Egarr’s approach to Bach of the Well-Tempered Clavier.
This approach pays dividends in a piece such as the G-sharp Minor Prelude, where you can savor Egarr’s changes of registration and the subtle shifts of emotion they signal. On the other hand, Egarr’s use of rubato is often so pervasive and exaggerated that a piece like the E-flat Major Prelude sounds like a different piece entirely in the hands of a Ralph Kirkpatrick or Glenn Gould (or Bob van Asperen or Angela Hewitt). So your reaction to Egarr’s playing will pretty much depend on any prejudices you bring to your listening. If you come to Egarr’s performance with Gould’s detached quicksilver playing or Kirkpatrick’s suave but still highly athletic approach in mind, Egarr may disappoint. I must say that listening to Ralph Kirpatrick’s recordings has deeply influenced the way I hear Bach, so I needed quite a bit of mental adjustment to get into Egarr’s approach. And I must confess that as beautiful as the playing is, and as much as Egarr’s attention to details is often stimulating, this is not my Well-Tempered Clavier.
For those collecting Egarr’s interpretation of the work, the harpsichordist says that he has chosen a higher pitch for Book II, a′= 415 as opposed to a′=392 and “a slightly heavier voicing of the quill to give the sound more strength.” Again, evidence of Egarr’s attention to every detail. I should add that the instrument he uses—a 1991 copy of a harpsichord by Ruckers of Amsterdam, 1638—is truly beautiful and that the Harmonia mundi engineers, recording in a church in the Netherlands, have afforded Egarr wonderfully clean natural sonics. So if you’re open to a possibly new way of hearing Bach played, be assured that this is a first-class production in every way.
– Lee Passarella
