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JS Bach: The Lute Suites

Franz Halász (guitar)

This may be a studio recording, but Halász draws the listener in as if to a live recital…Expressive freedom is apparent throughout but is especially unleashed in the early E minor BWV 996, where...

JS Bach: The Lute Suites

Franz Halász (guitar)

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This may be a studio recording, but Halász draws the listener in as if to a live recital…Expressive freedom is apparent throughout but is especially unleashed in the early E minor BWV 996, where...

About

The universal appeal of the music of Johannes Sebastian Bach is such that most musicians, regardless of their instrument, long to play it. As a consequence, his works are constantly being arranged for other instruments – following a practice that Bach himself excelled at, repeatedly reworking his own music as well as that of others. A case in point are the four so-called lute suites, all of which now belong to the standard repertoire of most concert guitarists. To what extent they were originally composed for a plucked instrument has always been a matter of contention and has given rise to many hypotheses. They hail from various periods in Bach’s career, and range from youthful elan (BWV 996) by way of the zenith of artistic creativity (BWV 995, 1006a) to serene maturity (BWV 997). For this recording, Franz Halász has himself transcribed two of the suites, performing the others in arrangements by Ansgar Krause. For reasons of practicality, the suites in G minor and C minor are usually transposed when played on the guitar, but the present arrangements have made it possible to record all four works in their original keys for the first time on the guitar. An unusually generous playing time furthermore allows them to be collected on a single disc. Franz Halász appears on a number of acclaimed albums for BIS, in a wide-ranging repertoire including Bach’s three sonatas for solo violin, which he, according to one reviewer makes ‘entirely his own’ (BBC Music Magazine).

Contents and tracklist

I. Prelude
Track length5:27
II. Allemande
Track length5:40
III. Courante
Track length2:20
IV. Sarabande
Track length2:43
V. Gavotte I & II
Track length5:03
VI. Gigue
Track length2:48
I. Prelude "Fantasia"
Track length3:20
II. Fugue
Track length7:08
III. Sarabande
Track length4:49
IV. Gigue - V. Double
Track length6:15
I. Prelude
Track length3:45
II. Loure
Track length3:37
III. Gavotte en rondeau
Track length3:12
IV. Menuett I - V. Menuett II
Track length5:08
VI. Bourrée
Track length1:53
VII. Gigue
Track length2:11
I. Prelude
Track length2:42
II. Allemande
Track length3:14
III. Courante
Track length2:36
IV. Sarabande
Track length3:52
V. Bourrée
Track length1:21
VI. Gigue
Track length3:28

Awards and reviews

October 2019

This may be a studio recording, but Halász draws the listener in as if to a live recital…Expressive freedom is apparent throughout but is especially unleashed in the early E minor BWV 996, where Halász’s ornamentation adds joy without detracting from rhythmic drive or grandeur. Fresh, alive – and thoroughly recommended.

September 2019

Franz Halász does something interesting here…He is one of those guitarists…who successfully combine historically informed practice with modern guitar technique to produce something original. But Halász’s lavish ornamentation nearly amount[s] to recomposition.

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