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Johann Sebastian Bach

The Four Ouvertures (Orchestral Suites)


Two genres dominated orchestral music in the time of Johann Sebastian Bach: the ouverture suite and the concerto. The ouverture suite represented the French tradition, the concerto the Italian. In Germany, however, these genres were mixed and remodelled in a new idiom, combining stylistic elements of both and also merging with the local tradition. Bach contributed directly to this development ... but whereas his surviving concertos are more than twenty in number, there are only four orchestral suites. This inequality reflects musical developments: for Bach and his generation, both the concerto and the orchestral suite were current genres, but they coexisted only for a relatively short time within the history of music. The concerto was still a young form with a promising future. The suite, however, was in decline; it would even fail to engage the interest of Bach’s sons’ generation. It was a victim of the spiritual and social revolutions of the time, long before the forces of change erupted in the French Revolution of 1789... French and aristocratic by its innermost nature, the suite lost ground in Germany as the nobility and bourgeoisie lost their fixation with France and the Versailles court, and instead developed their new, "enlightened’ lifestyle...
Klaus Hoffmann, from the booklet notes.

Bach Collegium Japan
Masaaki Suzuki

Disc I
1-5: Ouverture III (Suite in D major), BWV 1068 [23:42]
6-12: Ouverture I (Suite in C major), BWV 1066 [26:56]
13-19: Ouverture II (Suite in B minor), BWV 1067 [24:40]

Disc II
1-5: Ouverture IV (Suite in D major), BWV 1069 [24:27]

Recorded October 2003 at the Kobe Shoin Women’s University Chapel, Japan
Sound engineer: Thore Brinkmann. Recording producer: Jens Braun
© 2005 Bis Records AB BIS-SACD-1431



These performances are magnificent. There have been many fine recordings of these works, naturally, but few offer this much satisfaction on purely sonic terms – not just the engineering, which is state-of-the-art in both stereo and multi-channel formats, but the actual textures and colors that Masaaki Suzuki coaxes from his ensemble. In truth, it’s difficult to make this music sound well. On modern instruments, trumpets and drums tend to muddy the textures without penetrating as they should. Period instruments, on the other hand, offer a variety of problems, including a routinely clattery and overbearing harpsichord continuo, scruffy strings that make the famous Air sound positively anorexic, and iffy flute intonation in the B minor suite. Miraculously, Suzuki has solved all of these problems. His harpsichord is clear but pleasant-toned and discretely balanced. The strings have sufficient body and richness of tone to compete successfully with the oboes and cushion the trumpets and drums in the two works that require them. Textures are wonderfully transparent, and rhythms are ideally clear. The arrangement of the works, with the two big D major suites framing the other two, and the "flute suite" performed with solo strings, makes excellent sense and offers maximum contrast for continuous listening. In this latter work, Liliko Maeda is a terrific soloist, pure in timbre and gifted with the ability to really make the music dance – nowhere more so than in the famous concluding Badinerie, so often mercilessly breathy and rushed, but here the very embodiment of sly wit.

Suzuki’s handling of all four initial overtures deserves special mention. He catches the regal, aristocratic quality of the music as have few others, evoking the spirit of Hдndel (as in the Royal Fireworks Music) as much as Bach. That doesn’t mean his tempos are slow or lethargic – far from it. But the music has gravitas and a bigness of conception that’s so often missing from period-instrument performances, particularly from the ‘less is more’ school (for the record, Suzuki has six violins, and two each of violas and cellos). Nothing sounds rushed, not even the lively central episodes, which are always gracefully phrased as well as full of energy. In the D major suites, the trumpets and timpani cut through the texture as they should, but Suzuki makes their parts fit logically into their surroundings rather than encouraging the usual, overbearing ‘screech, blast, and bang’ that so often passes for period style. The various dances are also extremely well characterized, with tempos excellently chosen to emphasize the rhythmic qualities of each. The famous Air from the Third suite is serene but never static. The bourrйes have a nicely physical quality to the rhythm, while the Second suite’s Sarabande is wonderfully supple and elegant. The program concludes with a smashing Rйjouissance from the Fourth suite, a telling reminder of the fact that Bach conceived these pieces as courtly entertainment. In other words, Suzuki does more than just play the music very well: he evokes its purpose, social milieu, and lavishness of content in such a way that brings the listener as close as possible to Bach himself, and to the circles in which he worked. In this oft-recorded repertoire, that is a tremendous achievement. David Hurwitz, Classictoday.com



‘Well done, guys!’



... as Versailles lost its prominence, the importance of the dance as a social phenomenon also waned; today is almost impossibile to imagine the widespread position of eminence it enjoyed. The ‘Sun King’ (Louis XVI of France, who was a talented and enthusiastic dancer) had shared his passion with all of Europe, and until well the 18th century French dance, with its multitude of types, characters and forms, was a required cultural accomplishments for nobility and bourgeoisie. French dance also underpinned the suites for ensemble, keyboard or lute than not only enjoyed widespread popularity but also earned the genuine appreciation of the connoisseur. This is the cultural background of Bach’s orchestral suites. Fortunately, there is nothing in them to indicate that the genre is in terminal decline.
Klaus Hoffmann, from the booklet notes.

Note on the layout of the discs: the BIS entry differs from other competing SACD versions of the Four Suites by spreading them out over two discs, whereas the others fit on single SACDs. The 99-minute length indicates that all the repeats has been played, and Ouverture IV (Suite in D Major, BWV 1069) is relegated to the second disc by itself. As usual, the three languages-, 36- pages booklet in .pdf format is included, with extensive notes on works and performers.

A big thanks to the original uploader for his kind permission to upload this series!!!

Большое спасибо первоначального аплоадера за его любезное разрешение залить этой серии и использовать его материалы!!!

Качать ЗДЕСЬ.

This post has been edited by vpenev on 24-10-2007, 05:07

Johann Sebastian Bach

Christmas Oratorio (Weihnachts-Oratorium in sechs Teilen), BWV 248


Monika Frimmer, soprano
Yoshikazu Mera, counter-tenor
Gerd Tьrk, tenor
Peter Kooij, bass

Bach Collegium Japan
Masaaki Suzuki
Ryo Terakado, leader

Disc One
1-9: I. Teil, am 1. Weihnachtstag "Jauchzet, frohlocket, auf, preiset die Tage" [25:11]
10-23: II. Teil, am 2. Weihnachtstag "Und es waren Hirten in derselben Gegend" [28:42]
24-36: III. Teil, am 3. Weihnachtstag "Herrscher des Himmels, erhцre das Lallen" [22:45]

Disc Two
1-7: IV. Teil, am Fest der Beschneidung Christi "Fallt mit Danken, fallt mit Loben" [21:47]
8-18: V. Teil, am Sonntag nach Neujahr "Ehre sei dir, Gott, gesungen" [23:03]
19-29: VI. Teil, am Epiphaniasfest "Herr, wenn die stolzen Feinde schnauben" [23:22]

Recorded January 1998 at the Saitama Arts Theatre Concert Hall, Japan
Balance engineer: Jens Braun. Producer: Ingo Petry
© 1998 BIS CD 941/2



The six cantatas that make up Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, though each possessing its own musical and expressive identity, are nevertheless part of a unified work celebrating not just Christmas itself but also the New Year and Epiphany. A further unifying feature of the Oratorio – Bach himself used the word in connection with this work – is the use of a narrator to relate a linked sequence of events ranging over all six sections and, to some extent, interlinked. (...) This newcomer faces plentiful if not invariably stiff competition. In fact, it outstrips most of its rivals, in respect both of vocal and instrumental consideration. A quality in Masaaki Suzuki’s direction which I have always liked, and which is abundantly present here, is his feeling for naturally expressive contours, allowing the music to breathe freely. There is no cant, no vacuous showmanship, no undue reliance upon ephemeral orthodoxy, but instead an effortless exploration of the music’s expressive potential. Best of all, perhaps, is Suzuki’s refusal to pay even lip service to the upheld beliefs concerning Bach’s supposed predilection for fast tempos. Everything here seems to me to be exceptionally well judged, which is not to say that the pace of individual movements is necessarily slower than those in some competing versions, but rather that it is more interrelated with a concept of each section as a whole, and perhaps more textually conscious than some. In these respects the Oratorio’s underlying strength and unity of purpose is wonderfully well served. Part 2 of the work, with its 12/8 Sinfonia and tenderly intimate alto aria ‘Schlafe, mein Liebster’, provides a fine example of this thinking-through of tempo and Affekt. ... The soloists are generally very good indeed. Yoshikazu Mera makes a characteristically distinctive contribution and, though lacking the tonal warmth and projection of Andreas Scholl in the recent Renй Jacobs set, nevertheless touches my heart more readily in this work. Gerd Tьrk is a communicative singer whose light articulation well suits his partly narrative role. Peter Kooij never puts a foot wrong, while Monika Frimmer – though not always quite such a dependable singer as the others – makes a favourable impression in her duet with Kooij, ‘Herr, dein Mitleid, dein Erbarmen (Part 3). Elsewhere, her freshly complexioned, somewhat boyish voice is seldom other than pleasing. A small, well-balanced choir of technical agility and an accomplished quorum of instrumentalists, several of whom make strong obbligato contributions set the seal on an oustanding achievement. While in no way unseating other recordings in my affections, this new versions supplants them as my recommendation for the fines all-round performance on disc.
Nicholas Anderson, Gramophone, February 1999



Including the 50 pages-booklet in .pdf format with commentary for each track in English, German and French, with full Oratorio libretto in both original German and English translation.

A big thanks to the original uploader for his kind permission to upload this series!!!

Большое спасибо первоначального аплоадера за его любезное разрешение залить этой серии и использовать его материалы!!!

Качать ЗДЕСЬ.

This post has been edited by vpenev on 24-10-2007, 10:55

Since the beginnings of Christianity the birth, suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus have been central philosophical concepts in mankind’s imagination and have inspired artistic creations. In the Middle Ages in particular, dramatic representations of the biblical events blossomed; in Bach’s time, too, this tradition was still very much alive, and even today remnants of it have survived in folk art. Music had always played a prominent part and, especially in Passions, developed its own manifestations and genre traditions, in which Bach’s Passions and Christmas Oratorio are rooted. In a particular way, however, the Easter Oratorio is linked to older, folk traditions. The text is ultimately based on the resurrection story of the four Gospels (...) but the unknown librettist apparently used a literary model derived from the tradition of the mediжval Easter plays about the ‘Visitatio Sepulchris’ – the visit to the grave. This is evident from various textual allusions and also mirrored in the typical sequence of events. (...) For the oratorio, the number of characters was limited to just four: Mary the mother of Jesus (soprano voice), Mary Magdalene (alto), Peter (tenor) and John (bass). A surprising feature, indeed a unique one in Bach’s oratorios, is the omission of an ‘evangelist’ and this of the biblical story, knowledge of which is taken for granted.

The ‘parody’, and its inherent possibility of reworking secular occasional pieces as sacred compositions by adapting their texts, seems to have held increasing appeal for Bach during his Leipzig period. In this way he could give enduring life to works that had been written for a specific occasion and would otherwise have had no relevance. As with the Christmas and Easter Oratorios, the Ascension Oratorio can trace a substantial number of its roots back to secular predecessors. The work was assembled for Ascension Day in 1735 (19th May): the textual basis is the New Testament story of Jesus’ ascension according to Mark 16, Luke 24 and Acts 1, and the biblical story is related by an Evangelist who is performed by a tenor in secco recitatives accompanied only by continuo.





Цsteroratorium, BWV 249
Oratorium Festo Paschali - Easter Oratorium
"Kommt, Eilet und Laufet", BWV 249 [42:03]


Himmelfahrtoratorium, BWV 11
Oratorium Festo Ascensionis Christi - Ascension Oratorio
"Lobet Gott in seinen Reichen", BWV 11 [28:23]


Yukari Nonoshita, soprano
Patrick von Goethem, counter-tenor
Jan Kobow, tenor
Chiyuki Urano, bass

Bach Collegium Japan
Masaaki Suzuki
Natsumi Wakamatsu, leader

Recorded May 2004 at the Kobe Shoin Women’s University Chapel, Japan
Sound engineer: Jens Braun. Recording producer: Marion Schwebel
© 2005 BIS SACD 1561

... Genre-wise the present two works balance between oratorios and cantatas. Though their format is not far removed from that of the longer cantatas, some differences are obvious: for instance, in its earliest version the soloists in the Easter Oratorio were assigned roles (such as Mary Magdalene and Peter), while the Ascension Oratorio features an Evangelist, filling the same function as in the more monumental Passions. Both works - like the Christmas Oratorio - are, at least in part, so-called parodies: reworkings of secular occasional pieces as sacred compositions by adapting their texts. Such origins may to some extent explain the festive note of these two celebrations of the resurrection of Christ, and his ascension to heaven. The opening instrumental movement of the Easter Oratorio, which uses the theme from ‘Erschallet, ihr Lieder’ of Cantata BWV 172, resounds with jubilant trumpets and timpani, and the Ascension Oratorio begins with a chorus in which choir and orchestra "praise God in His kingdoms" with the splendour worthy of a great prince. Bis.se

Bach’s Christmas Oratorio is the famous one, of course, but there are two others – for Easter and Ascension. If you’ve already come across Masaaki Suzuki and his Bach Collegium of Japan in their ongoing series of Bach Cantatas, then you’ll have an excellent idea of the qualities to expect here, and you won’t be disappointed by the brilliance of the orchestral introduction and the crisp articulation of the opening chorus of the Easter Oratorio. Suzuki uses Bach’s final version from April 1749 which gained a third trumpet part... the more the merrier, in the opening Overture. The soloists are fresh-voiced and sing with unaffected simplicity, especially soprano Yukari Nonoshita as Mary the mother of Jesus in the Easter Oratorio. This is such uplifting music ... literally so in the case of the Ascension Oratorio, but it’s here you’ll find the only potential fly-in-the-ointment. The alto solo is perhaps the most famous music on the disc, the piece that Bach later turned into the Agnus Dei of his B minor Mass, and counter-tenor Patrick van Goethem’s voice can’t match the effortless beauty of the others, which may not matter if you actively prefer male altos. The recording is first class: full, warm and detailed, in stereo from the CD layer or in surround as an SACD. Suzuki’s recordings are as good as anyone else out there at the moment, and better than most.
Bbc.co.uk



Bach Collegium Japan

This BWV 249 is as close to perfect a Bach recording as I’ve ever heard. The performance is full of life, full of Baroque spirit while being strict to the letter of authentic practice. The horns have just the right amount of grit, the strings just bouncy enough. Balances side to side and front to back are perfect. Balance between instruments, chorus and soloists is perfect. The soloists are exceptional, especially the counter-tenor Patrick van Goethem. Those who think Berlioz invented orchestration should ponder the amazing sound Bach gets with flutes and strings in the accompaniment to ‘Sanfte soll, Mein Todeskummer...’, clearly projecting the mood of a Spring day with the murmur of birdsong and a gentle zephyr rustling the tree leaves. The sound of the disc is outstanding. If you buy only one recording (...) buy the Suzuki.
Paul Shoemaker, Musicweb.uk.net

Three languages-, 36 pages-booklet in .pdf format included,
with extensive notes on works, performers and Oratorios’ text in German and English.

A big thanks to the original uploader for his kind permission to upload this series!!!

Большое спасибо первоначального аплоадера за его любезное разрешение залить этой серии и использовать его материалы!!!

Качать ЗДЕСЬ.

This post has been edited by vpenev on 24-10-2007, 11:36

Johann Sebastian Bach

Clavier-Ubung I - Partitas for harpsichord


... The fact that published pieces represent only a minority of Bach’s entire creative output should be understood in the actual historical context: he was an extremely busy man in his office, and the financial burden of publishing music in his time was far greater than we, from our 20th century perspective, might assume that it was. This being the case, Bach’s decision to undertake the publication of a series of works for keyboard instrument under the general title of Clavier-Ubung (‘Keyboard practice’) speaks volumes of his pride and ambition to assess himself not only as a learned church musician, but also as a highly competetent teacher and keyboard virtuoso. The series began in the autumn of 1726 with the first of the Partitas, followed by other five pieces between 1727 and 1730, so to reduce the financial risk and to inject earnings from earlier sales into future productions. A year later, Bach assembled all six and republished the collection as Opus 1, denoting his satisfaction with the initial success of his project and his ambition to continue the series in the years to come. Bach published Part II (consisting of the Italian Concerto and French Ouverture) in 1735, which was followed four years later by Part III, the so-called German Organ Mass. Finally, after a shorter break of two years, in 1741 the most serious and ambitious composition ever written for harpsichord, the Goldberg Variations came to crown the Clavier-Ьbung series as Part IV. Which still remains the most complete studies exploring the art of keyboard instruments that was to be seen in the works of German Baroque composers; during this fifteen-year period concerned with the series, Bach published no other pieces.
Yo Tomita, from the booklet notes

Disc I
1-6: Partita no. 1 in B flat major, BWV 825 [21:54]
7-13: Partita no. 3 in A minor, BWV 827 [22:02]
14-20: Partita no. 4 in D major, BWV 828 [37:03]

Disc II
1-6: Partita no. 2 in C minor, BWV 826 [22:32]
7-13: Partita no. 5 in G major, BWV 829 [23:37]
14-20: Partita no. 6 in E minor, BWV 830 [34:05]

Masaaki Suzuki
2-manuals harpsichord by Willem Kroesbergen, Utrecht 1982
after enlarged Ruckers

Recorded October 2001 at the Kobe Shoin Women’s University Chapel, Japan
Sound engineer and recording producer: Thore Brinkmann
© 2005 Bis Records AB BIS-CD-1313/1314



Masaaki Suzuki joins a well-trammelled path of harpsichordists who have attempted to elucidate Bach’s exhaustive imagination in these six Titans. One of his greatest strengths – as one hears in the distinguished cantata series with Collegium Bach Japan – is the satisfyingly measured and articulated unfolding of individual lines, such as in the ‘Allemande’ of the Second Partita, the ‘Gigue’ of the Fourth, the ‘Sarabande’ of the Sixth and so on: there is no vain attempt to stamp an intrusive ‘personality’ on his subject, and yet neither does that mean cold-hearted objectivity. Indeed, it soon becomes clear that Suzuki’s way is both distinctive and thoughtful. An undoubted virtuoso (he uses an instrument by Willem Kroesbergen, after a Ruckers), Suzuki’s playing does raise certain questions as to the extent to which his interpretations are pre-ordained. Prophecy is, of course, inherent in any form of musical preparation but it is also a matter of the means by which musicians allow their musical and intellectual reflexes to be honed and distilled before the ‘event’. I only mention this because, despite the clarity and success of Suzuki’s vision, one rarely hears articulation, textural spreading, melodic rubati (such as in the ‘Corrente’ of the third Partita) or ornamentation emerging from the ‘moment’ in quite the way one does with either Rousset, Pinnock or Haugsand. I don’t wish, however, to give the impression that there is anything mechanical about Suzuki’s playing; that is certainly not at issue as he conveys a suppleness of phrasing and concentrated expressivity in many of the performances here. There is a courtly congeniality in the First Partita, if without the invigorating fun of Ketil Haugsand or sonorous generosity of Trevor Pinnock. The Second Partita is an almost unmitigated success of a kind which one rarely experiences, for its rhythmic authority alone. In terms of bravura, only Haugsand provides a brilliance of glistening orchestral opulence to the opening saccadй of the Fourth Partita, but Suzuki delivers just as thrilling a fast section and carries this through with the longest and most mesmerising ‘Allemande’ on record, beating Rousset by a clear minute, to 12'05". I found his Fifth Partita a touch unseasoned, lacking the wit and balletic ‘lift’ of the dexterous Staier but the Sixth is a tour de force to rival all the above versions, in gravitas if not fantasy.
Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, Gramophone, April 2003



Masaaki Suzuki

... The title Clavier-Ьbung (‘Keyboard practice’) should not imply that the work is a study for beginners. Rather, this particular title appears to have been chosen so that, under the generality of its scope, the various types and styles of music written for several different keyboard instruments can be accommodated. This is exactly what Bach did, producing music which was not only varied in type but also demanded high technical standards in perfomance. Bach focused his target audience upon ‘Music Lovers’ alone, as in the series we see no reference to those ‘desiderous of learning’ which we find in the title pages of his other works of educational intent, such as Inventions and Sinfonias and the Well-Tempered Clavier. In this way Bach was able to explore musical content of higher dimensions. In another sense, this may also have had an unfortunate consequence, in that the circulation of these works was not as high as anticipated, and many copies remained unsold, simply because the music was technically too difficult for most of the middle-class amateurs who dominated the market.
Yo Tomita, 1997

... Listeners familiar with other recordings in Masaaki Suzuki's ongoing traversal of Bach’s solo keyboard works may find his performances of the Partitas somewhat of an anomaly. For instance, the sharply delineated juxtapositions of tempos that made his Fantasias and Fugues program so thrilling are nowhere to be heard here. The interpretive agenda this time is much subtler and decidedly more introverted. Not only does his choice of relatively moderate-to-slow tempos throughout (and his observance of all repeats) make this performance one of the longest ever – each CD of this two-disc set extends beyond 80 minutes – there also is a sense of deeply considered involvement with the way phrases are turned, details attended to, and passages executed. Like Bach, who esteemed these compositions highly, Suzuki’s performances suggest admiration, even occasionally excessive adoration. Listen for instance to the way Suzuki renders the opening ‘Sinfonia’ of the second Partita, to the way in which each thematic idea, however brief, is underlined through his use of subtle dynamic shading and crisp counterpoint. Likewise in the ‘Passepied’ of the fifth Partita Suzuki’s emphasis on inner detail often makes him sound as if he’s recapitulating the recapitulations (though without ever sacrificing the movement's already quirky momentum). In less capable hands this kind of overt attention to detail could sound affected or needlessly fussy. In Suzuki's very capable ones however, we hear an artist ceaselessly probing, relishing both the significance and joy of his task. BIS’s engineering is fine, though admittedly the harpsichord sounds less immediate than in Suzuki’s previous offering mentioned above. There is no shortage of outstanding harpsichord performances of Bach’s Partitas, and for listeners who may prefer a performance equally as personal though a bit more extroverted, the stylish angular rhythms that characterize Blandine Verlet’s performance on Philips, the freewheeling elegant ornamentation of Igor Kipnis on Seraphim, or the fresh unfettered spirit that Christophe Rousset brings to his L’ Oiseau Lyre cycle make them deservedly distinctive and worthwhile as well.
John Greene, ClassicsToday.com

A compendium of Johann Sebastian Bach’s compositions which were printed during his lifetime (1685-1750).

Three languages-, 24- pages booklet in .pdf format included.

A big thanks to the original uploader for his kind permission to upload this series!!!

Большое спасибо первоначального аплоадера за его любезное разрешение залить этой серии и использовать его материалы!!!

Качать ЗДЕСЬ.

This post has been edited by vpenev on 25-10-2007, 00:39

Johann Sebastian Bach

Clavier-Ubung II - Italian Concerto & French Overture


... The fact that published pieces represent only a minority of Bach’s entire creative output should be understood in the actual historical context: he was an extremely busy man in his office, and the financial burden of publishing music in his time was far greater than we, from our 20th century perspective, might assume that it was. This being the case, Bach’s decision to undertake the publication of a series of works for keyboard instrument under the general title of Clavier-Ubung (‘Keyboard practice’) speaks volumes of his pride and ambition to assess himself not only as a learned church musician, but also as a highly competetent teacher and keyboard virtuoso. The series began in the autumn of 1726 with the first of the Partitas, followed by other five pieces between 1727 and 1730, so to reduce the financial risk and to inject earnings from earlier sales into future productions. A year later, Bach assembled all six and republished the collection as Opus 1, denoting his satisfaction with the initial success of his project and his ambition to continue the series in the years to come. Bach published Part II (consisting of the Italian Concerto and French Ouverture) in 1735, which was followed four years later by Part III, the so-called German Organ Mass. Finally, after a shorter break of two years, in 1741 the most serious and ambitious composition ever written for harpsichord, the Goldberg Variations came to crown the Clavier-Ьbung series as Part IV. Which still remains the most complete studies exploring the art of keyboard instruments that was to be seen in the works of German Baroque composers; during this fifteen-year period concerned with the series, Bach published no other pieces.
Yo Tomita, from the booklet notes


1-3: Italian Concerto, BWV 971
"Concerto nach Italiaenischen Gusto" [13:31]
4-13: French Overture, BWV 831
"Ouverture nach Franzцsischer Art [34:54]
14-17: Sonata in D minor, BWV 964
after Sonata in A minor for solo violin, BWV 1003 [20:52]

Masaaki Suzuki
2-manuals harpsichord by Willem Kroesbergen,
Utrecht 1982 after enlarged Ruckers.

Recorded May 2004 at the Kobe Shoin Women’s University Chapel, Japan
Sound engineer and recording producer: Jens Braun
© 2006 Bis Records AB BIS-CD-1469



In between concerts, recordings and tours with his Bach Collegium Japan, the indefatigable Masaaki Suzuki still manages to make time for the harpsichord (...) Now the turn has come to the Italian Concerto and its companion piece, the French Overture. The two works, which make up the so-called Clavier-Ьbung, part II, demonstrate Bach’s familiarity with two main orchestral genres – the concerto and the overture suite – which respectively represent two important national styles of the day, Italian and French. As Yo Tomita argues in his liner notes, Bach’s aim was to extract these two distinct styles and give them expression in two keyboard works. Maybe he succeeded too well as the Italian Concerto, in particular, was hailed by some contemporaries as an indication that Bach was moving away from his ‘old-fashioned’ contrapuntal style... Highly characterful music then, in a programme which is complemented by the Sonata in D minor, a transcription – probably by the composer himself – of the Sonata in A minor for solo violin. bis.se

... The title Clavier-Ubung (‘Keyboard practice’) should not imply that the work is a study for beginners. Rather, this particular title appears to have been chosen so that, under the generality of its scope, the various types and styles of music written for several different keyboard instruments can be accommodated. This is exactly what Bach did, producing music which was not only varied in type but also demanded high technical standards in perfomance. Bach focused his target audience upon ‘Music Lovers’ alone, as in the series we see no reference to those ‘desiderous of learning’ which we find in the title pages of his other works of educational intent, such as Inventions and Sinfonias and the Well-Tempered Clavier. In this way Bach was able to explore musical content of higher dimensions. In another sense, this may also have had an unfortunate consequence, in that the circulation of these works was not as high as anticipated, and many copies remained unsold, simply because the music was technically too difficult for most of the middle-class amateurs who dominated the market.
Yo Tomita, 1997



Masaaki Suzuki

There’s no denying Masaaki Suzuki’s Bach credentials, but despite plenty of virtuosity and enthusiasm, these performances are let down by two factors. The first of these concerns Suzuki’s use of rubato, which lends the tutti sections of the Italian Concerto a stop-and-start quality that quickly becomes tiresome. It also compromises some of the opportunities for contrast between the ‘orchestral’ and ‘solo’ episodes, despite an instrument with aptly differentiated stops. Indeed, the slow movement is quite lovely, with its delicate, lute-like timbre. Suzuki’s approach works better in the French Overture, the opening movement of which has a rhetorical grandeur that can take Suzuki’s inflections of phrase better than the concerto. Once again the slower music (the Sarabande in particular) has plenty of grace and an affecting lyricism, while the more muscular pieces generally find Suzuki responding in kind. - However, the second drawback is the harpsichord’s sound. Soft bits aside, this double-manual instrument has an aggressively steely and dry tone that, combined with the high-level recording, easily might become aurally fatiguing after a few minutes. Certainly it renders true legato playing all but impossible. It may be that Suzuki’s phrasing is designed to counteract to some extent this harsh, even mechanical timbre, but if so why choose this instrument in the first place? These inherent limitations in terms of responsiveness to touch mean that choosing the right instrument is critical, especially in a recording situation where sonic peculiarities tend to be magnified. It’s a shame, really, not just because these two works naturally belong together, but also because Suzuki has found a very attractive and interesting coupling in the form of a keyboard arrangement (by Bach or one of his students) of the Solo Violin Sonata in A minor. So despite respectable musicianship, this disc remains something of a chore to get through, and Bach should never be that.
David Hurwitz, Classictoday.com

A compendium of Johann Sebastian Bach’s compositions which were printed during his lifetime (1685-1750).

A big thanks to the original uploader for his kind permission to upload this series!!!

Большое спасибо первоначального аплоадера за его любезное разрешение залить этой серии и использовать его материалы!!!

Качать ЗДЕСЬ.

This post has been edited by vpenev on 25-10-2007, 00:51

Johann Sebastian Bach

Clavier-Ubung III - German Organ Mass


... Johann Sebastian Bach’s Clavier-Ьbung (‘Keyboard practice’) series began between 1726 and 1730 with the publication of the Six Partitas, republished a year later as ‘Opus 1’ denoting his satisfaction with the initial success of his project and his ambition to continue the series in the years to come. Bach published Part II (consisting of the Italian Concerto and French Ouverture) in 1735, which was followed four years later by Part III, the so-called ‘German Organ Mass’. Finally, in 1741 the Goldberg Variations came to crown the Clavier-Ьbung series as Part IV. Which still remains the most complete studies exploring the art of keyboard instruments that was to be seen in the works of German Baroque composers ... The so-called German Organ Mass was published towards the end of September 1739: it was Bach’s first published work for organ, and was also the longest and most problematic of all the printed works that appeared during his lifetime. The collection consists of multiple settings of the German Kyrie and Gloria, pairs of settings for each of six catechism chorales and four duets, all of which are enclosed by the prelude and fugue in E flat major, BWV 552. The common nickname, ‘the German Organ Mass’, did not in fact derive from Bach, which gave the following title to the collection: ‘Third Part of Clavier-Ьbung, consisting of various preludes on the catechism and other hymns for the organ. For music lovers and especially for connoisseurs of such work, to refresh their spirits (...)’.
Yo Tomita, from the booklet notes


Disc I
Prelude in E flat major, BWV 552/1
1: Preludium pro Organo pleno [8:56]
Kyrie and Gloria settings, BWV 669-677
2-3, 8: Kyrie, Gott Vater in Ewigkeit [5:13]
4-5, 9: Christe, aller Welt Trost [6:37]
6-7, 10: Kyrie, Gott heiliger Geist [6:46]
11-14: Allein Gott in der Hцh’ sei Her’ [9:34]
Six catechism chorales, BWV 678-689
15-17: Dies sind die heilgen zehen Gebot [7:45]
18-20: Wir glauben all an einen Gott [6:44]


Disc II
1-3: Vater unser im Himmelreich [10:27]
4-6: Christ, unser Herr, zum Jordan kam [6:06]
7-9: Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir 11:04]
10-12: Jesus Christus, unser Heiland [8:24]
Four duets, BWV 802-805
13: Duetto I in E minor [1:58]
14: Duetto II in F major [3:22]
15: Duetto III in G major [2:32]
16: Duetto IV in A minor [2:46]
Fugue in E flat major, BWV 552/2
17: Fuga a 5 con pedale pro Organo pleno [6:31]

Masaaki Suzuki
Marc Garnier Organ, built in 2000
Bach Collegium Japan Choir

Recorded March and April 2000 at the Sougakudo Concert Hall,
Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music
Sound engineer and recording producer: Hans Kipfter
© 2000 Bis Records AB BIS-CD-1091/1092



Of all the bright stars from East Asia revealed by BIS, none twinkles more brightly than Masaaki Suzuki, professor of organ and harpsichord at Tokyo’s University of Fine Arts and Music – where this recording was made. Among releases featuring Suzuki ... this is his first solo organ disc. A pupil of both Ton Koopman and Piet Kee, Suzuki seems to have been influenced more in his playing by the latter. He certainly has Kee’s precision and respect for the text, with none of the Koopman’s exuberance or individuality. He plays in a brisk, no-nonsense manner which, as in the famous Wir Glauben Prelude, injects the music with a fine sense of purpose but which, in the great E flat Prelude, sacrifices some of the music’s grandeur. He has a sound instinct for registration, and only with the smallest Vater unser Prelude, where a single four-foot flute is graced by a tremulant, does he seem to choose a colour primarily for its beauty. Perhaps the biggest clue to his approach to the organ lies in his concentration, on disc at least, on the harpsichord. These are very heavily articulated performances, with, to my ears, an over-concentration on the horizontal. The final Allein Gott Prelude chatters away on an endearing four-foot Traverso (yes, all registration details are meticolously mapped out in a first-rate booklet) yet it all seems devoid of shape and warmth. The accompanied chorales, sung by singers from the Bach Collegium Japan, are taken from cantata movements, giving the now customary addition of sung chorales to organ solo Preludes added interest. There is almost clinical cleanliness in this singing – not a wobble, not the merest whiff of vibrato in sight – and it seems so closely focused on the note that entries appear disconcertingly direct. As for the organ, built by Marc Garnier in 2000, it is a splendid baroque-style beast, boasting some 75 speaking stops and sounding glorious in the clean but far from unyielding acoustic of the University’s Sougakudo Concert Hall. The recording captures it vividly with an almost total absence of background action or wind noise.
Marc Rochester, Gramophone, June 2001, pag. 74



Masaaki Suzuki at the Marc Garnier Organ

... Traditionally, the Missa pieces are invariably related to the Trinity, and it is no mere coincidence that the Trinitarian symbolism is found in various aspects of the collection. One of these is the use of the three-flat key of E flat major used not only in the opening and closing movements, but also in the first Kyrie setting; in fact, the whole collection is built on this numerical foundation, which is evident from the number of movements in the Mass chorales (9=3x3) and the entire collection (27=3x3x3), not to mention the presence of the number ‘three’ as the headword in the work’s title. Also present in the collection is the symbolism for ‘two’, the dualism as well as symmetry: each chorale tune is set twice, first in a grander pedaliter setting, and then a shorter manualiter setting. It has been frequently pointed out that these may be connected respectively to Luther’s Greater and Lesser Catechisms, or to the ‘connoisseurs’ and ‘music-lovers’ quoted by Bach on the title-page.
Yo Tomita, 2000

Today we more frequently hear the work played by solo organ, though here the Bach Collegium Japan Choir performs choral items BWV 38/6, 260, 298, 363, 371, 416 and 437 with organ accompaniment by Suzuki ... Let me say from the outset, with one major caveat, that this pair of discs has afforded me considerable pleasure. I very much enjoy the fresh and spontaneous playing of Masaaki Suzuki in his role as organist, the very dramatic handling of the opening Prelude bringing a nice feeling of anticipation for the remaining performances. Throughout his playing is crisp, neat, and with imaginative registration; the inner clarity that he brings in the more complex scoring is an added pleasure. He has an impressive understanding of the style of Bach performance we have grown to believe as being ‘authentic’. He has an immaculate sense of pacing and balance in the choral items, with the eight singers showing, in their enunciation, with a good grasp of the German text. I must add that the new Marc Garnier organ in Tokyo is a pure joy, whether working in the large-scale Prelude and Fugue or as a chamber instrument providing discreet accompaniments. – My reservation comes in the sound quality. Having enjoyed the opening solo-organ track, I quickly turned to the back page of the accompanying booklet when the choir entered on the second track, convinced that two locations had been used. The recording, in fact, took place at the Sougakudo Concert Hall at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, though the acoustic in the choral items seems to be that of a church, the choir somewhat distant in a nicely controlled reverberation. Nether the solo organ nor the choir tracks are in any way deficient or displeasing, but to my ears they do not sit happily together. It is a feature you would have to hear and judge for yourself.
© Fanfare Magazine 2001, Andante.com

A compendium of Johann Sebastian Bach’s compositions which were printed during his lifetime (1685-1750)

A big thanks to the original uploader for his kind permission to upload this series!!!

Большое спасибо первоначального аплоадера за его любезное разрешение залить этой серии и использовать его материалы!!!

Качать ЗДЕСЬ.

This post has been edited by vpenev on 25-10-2007, 18:05

Johann Sebastian Bach

Clavier-Ubung IV - Goldberg Variations


... Johann Sebastian Bach’s Clavier-Ubung [‘Keyboard practice’] series began between 1726 and 1730 with the publication of the Six Partitas, republished a year later as ‘Opus 1’ denoting his satisfaction with the initial success of his project and his ambition to continue the series in the years to come. Bach published Part II (consisting of the Italian Concerto and French Ouverture) in 1735, which was followed four years later by Part III, the so-called ‘German Organ Mass’. Finally, in 1741 the Goldberg Variations came to crown the Clavier-Ьbung series, which still remains the most complete studies exploring the art of keyboard instruments that was to be seen in the works of German Baroque composers ... The Goldberg Variations (BWV 988) is often regarded as the most serious and ambitious composition ever written for the harpsichord. Based on a single ground bass theme, the variations display not only Bach’s exceptional knowledge of the diverse styles of music of the day but also his exquisite performing techniques. Being also the largest of all clavier pieces published during the Baroque period, the work soars high above the rest in terms of its encyclopжdic character: from this, it is often considered that it sums up the entire history of Baroque variation form, the Diabelli Variations by Ludwig van Beethoven being its Classical counterpart.
Yo Tomita, from the booklet notes

Goldberg Variations
Aria mit verschiedenen Variationen
(Clavier-Ubung IV, BWV 988)

1: Aria [4:44]
2-31: Variatio 1 - 30 [65:19]
32: Aria da capo [3:13]

Masaaki Suzuki
2-manuals harpsichord by Willem Kroesbergen, Utrecht 1982
Recorded February, June and July 1997 at the e Kobe Shoin Women’s University Chapel, Japan
Sound engineer and recording producer: Marion Schwabel
© 1997 Bis Records AB BIS-CD-819




At first I did not think I was going to get on with Masaaki Suzuki’s recording of Bach’s Goldberg Variations. Right from the start he makes a point of spreading the texture of the Aria horizontally to an extent that I find musically uncalled for. Elsewhere in this great set of variations a degree of textural spreading b staggering the hands affords additional variety and contrast, but to over-apply it into the Aria is to deny this sarabande something of its sublime nobility and simply expressive restraint. A personal reaction, certainly, but it got me off to a bad start. Happily, though, from the First Variation to the Quodlibet (Var. 30) I found myself carried along by Suzuki’s virtuosity and his very clearly argued understanding of the music. For this recording he has chosen an instrument by Willem Kroesbergen, modelled on a Ruckers. The mannerisms present in the Aria, about which Suzuki will undoubtedly have given careful thought, are in stark contrast to his performance elsewhere; for this is, by and large, rather self-effacing playing, free from quirks, gimmicks and inclination towards redundant highlighting of harmonic moments in the text. Some additional ornaments are applied, but always discreetly and effectively. Suzuki has a clear sense of line and an engaging rhythmic sense. Var. 29 is given a more graceful rhythmic shape than almost any rival version that I know. He brings out the lyrical content of the music with limpid articulation and lucid textures, both of which virtues are abundantly present in Vars. 11, 20 and 23. Occasionally, I found him a shade unresponsive to dance rhythms or, rather, the spirit of a dance. The 9/8 rhythm of Var. 24 seemed a little leaden to my ears. Var. 25 comes over well, with an effective halting rhythm at the outset, and en expressive cogency liberated from the present implications conjured up by Landowska’s ‘Black Pearl’. The Quodlibet, a joyful, carefree piece, moves with easy gesture but is, perhaps, a touch too serious in intent. Technically, there is little that goes awry in Suzuki’s impressive performance: his polished, well-sustained and honest playing, in which he observes all but a handful of repeats, belongs up there with the finest interpreters. The booklet contains an excellent, at times debunking, essay by Yo Tomita.
Nicholas Anderson, Gramophone, March 1998, pag. 88




Masaaki Suzuki

A compendium of Johann Sebastian Bach’s compositions which were printed during his lifetime (1685-1750). Including 28-page, three languages-booklet with detailed info on the work and the organ registration.

A big thanks to the original uploader for his kind permission to upload this series!!!

Большое спасибо первоначального аплоадера за его любезное разрешение залить этой серии и использовать его материалы!!!

Качать ЗДЕСЬ.

This post has been edited by vpenev on 25-10-2007, 18:43

Это был последный, изданный до сих пор, том из Bach / Suzuki series, BIS. Желаю всем скачавших релизов приятное прослушивание!

This post has been edited by vpenev on 25-10-2007, 18:53

а нет ли относительно свежих 36-ой, 37-ой и 38-ой частей?

Не знаю к сожалению. У меня были только чужые релизы, которые я залил здесь.

Кстати сьемки изчезли именно из за того что находились не в мои адресы, а в адресы автора релизов. Лично я никогда не пользую Web Shack дль сьемок - он мне никак не нравиться именно из за то что в нем стирают содержание если посещение надвишаеть какие то там границы. Поетому именно я началь използовать photobucket.com сделав себе два адреса чтоб посещаемость каждого из них была ниже границ етого места для сьемок.

This post has been edited by vpenev on 17-03-2008, 04:54

any chance these downloads have been relocated to another ID. i cannot find them any longer. this would be fantastic.