Comparison recordings:
Glenn Gould, organ. (excerpts) [ADD]
Sony M2K 42770
Paul Jordan, Heiller organ. (Bergel/Jordan
completion) Brioso BR 128
Helmut Walcha, organ. (Walcha completion)
[ADD] DGG Archive 463 712-2
Musica Antiqua Köln, chest of viols.
DGG Archive 431 704-2
Davitt Moroney, harpsichord. (Moroney
completion) Harmonia Mundi HMC 901168/70
Delmé Quartet. (arr Simpson,
Tovey completion) Hyperion CDA 67138
Alexander and Daykin, pianos. Connoisseur
Society CD 4203
At one time rarely
heard, this final work of Bach’s is
now very frequently recorded and in
a variety of editions and instrumentations.
It was first performed publicly by full
orchestra and has been arranged for
string quartet, chamber ensemble and
chest of viols. Even the Swingle Singers
performed excerpts. Now accepted as
a keyboard work upon the research of
Tovey and others, there is still a variety
of approaches, for that keyboard can
be harpsichord, organ or pianoforte.
One of the most successful versions
is listed above for pianoforte duo.
There is also controversy
regarding the order of the movements,
and even the actual movements themselves,
some of which, on one basis or other,
can be omitted. This recording follows
the 1751 published version without deviation.
The final fugue was
left incomplete by Bach; or, more correctly,
Bach failed to write down the completion
of the final fugue as Bach most surely
knew how it would go to the end. He
was known for, beginning with a theme
or themes, hearing a fugue in his mind
in a single glance, a single grasp.
Why the family was unable to engrave
Bach’s completion of the work forms
a puzzle with many possible answers.
Most likely Bach’s sketches were simply
misplaced inexplicably; such things
happen, sometimes most often when people
are being extra careful. Another possible
answer that I favor is that the family
found the sketch and didn’t recognize
it because it was so revolutionary they
couldn’t see the connection with what
was already written, or in a kind of
personal shorthand they couldn’t decipher.
Completions of the final fugue have
been written out and performed by Tovey,
Walcha, Moroney, Erich Bergel and several
others. There is little doubt in my
mind that Glenn Gould intended to write
his own completion eventually, but he
died before he could get around to it,
hence his recording of the work is truncated.
The final fugue in
its broken form is already the longest
fugue Bach ever wrote and had he finished
it it would be recognized as one of
his greatest works, shortlisted by many
for the greatest single piece of music
ever written. But what would we think
of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony if he
never finished the last movement? The
Brahms Violin Concerto without its last
movement? What do we think of the Venus
de Milo without its arms, the incomplete
Turandot, the incomplete Lulu,
the unorchestrated Mahler Tenth Symphony?
What we think is that we want them finished
because what we have is off-balance
and distorted by not being rounded off,
like a table with three legs. So why
don’t people play this work as Tovey
completed it? His solution is extremely
musical, if a little anachronistic -
the drama and the harmonies waft in
the direction of Wagner. Tovey’s completion
is probably already in the public domain
— I don’t think Tovey ever intended
to copyright it — but even in the strictest
interpretation of copyright laws, will
probably be in the public domain in
four years. It has been recorded several
times so in any event the required royalty
would presumably be minimal.
Apart from the gigantic
final fugue the rest of this work, consisting
of a series, over an hour long, of different
kinds of fugues on the same theme can
to some listeners seem dry and pedantic.
The successful performers of the work,
including Winge and those listed above,
give the work life and variety through
their dramatic instinct and their thorough
knowledge of their instruments and their
virtuoso skill.
This recording resembles
Glenn Gould’s recording in that it is
brisk in tempo and light in touch. Winge’s
organ has more attractive sound than
Gould’s. This recording is complete,
but does not attempt a completion of
the final fugue which simply stops as
the player runs out of notes on the
page, the way it is most often performed,
leaving the listener in shock. The organ
sound is luscious, bright and clear;
for such a small instrument, remarkably
varied. Some connoisseurs of the instrument
will want the recording purely for the
sound of the organ itself. I wouldn’t
be surprised if some organ enthusiasts
buy the recording simply for the photograph
of the instrument, for it is amazingly
beautiful.
Unusually this recording
is on a single disk, as is the fascinating
version for chest of viols by Musica
Antiqua Köln, which requires quick
tempi and which further requires clear,
bright sound.
Paul Shoemaker
for
details
Terje Winge (Gloger organ) 
