Contentious: Genn Gould couldnt make it today

I have the complete GG recorded Bach opus. I dont listen to it much anymore. In every case I have since found artists who can provide a better, more balanced and more sympathetic interpretation.

I have no doubts about GGs place in history. Without him many of the recordings I currently love probably wouldnt exist. I have no doubt that he has been an important influence on present day performers. I am also convinced that his mold-shattering approach has had a substantial influence on the way we hear and interpret Bach BUT...

I also think that if he where to issue a new recording today it would have little following. We would regard him as idiosyncratic, egotistical and unsympathetic. GG is now an interesting historical event but no longer to be taken seriously as an interpreter. Discuss.....

Can I have it?

Every listener has his personal meaning of 'balanced' and 'symphathetic' Glenn Gould had a very personal interpretating rules, each one of them applied by him systematically during his career. His ornaments, rhythmical fluctuations and balance-between-lines are not capriccious.

Most of the true symbols of the piano playing had only in common the quality of being identified at first-hearing by a trained listener. (one can recognize very easy Horowitz, Rachmaninoff, Hoffman, Arrau, etc... and of course Glenn Gould) Each one of them had their personal 'balance' and personal way of 'being sympathetic'. (Both 'Balance' and 'Sympathetic' are relative terms, not absolute) And none of them have sucessors. (But it´s not a reason to reduce their importance as interpreter).

No question that GG 'shattered the mold' on Bach interpretation, as you have stated. I recently purchased a new Sony Classical release of 12 re-recordings of GG/Bach LP's. His approach seems to be 'mathematical', which from my perspective suits Bach just fine. However, I don't believe that this method works well with Mozart. I enjoy juxtaposing a GG/Mozart sonata against, let's say, Andras Shiff. Glenn Gould was colorful and idiosyncratic, and a loss to the music world at an early age.

Glenn Gould is an exception to all the rules: admired as a well-kept secret treasure by a small group of 'serious' fans, but when the secret got out he became as hyped as late Horowitz. A wholly idiosyncratic geek and yet he played Bach as self-effacingly HIP as Bach can possibly get on a piano. A recluse and a superstar.

If Gould would have his (media) debut today, his Goldberg Variations could still top the charts, riveting both the large and the rarefied audience; both his performance as an artist and as a nerd would still be new and unheard of, almost certainly inspiring both documentary makers and a major label's marketing division to create and highlight the same paradoxes as they did in the previous century. Succes would be inevitable.

Just imagine hearing Gould's 1955 Goldberg Variations for the very first time: wouldn't Perahia's recording sound a bit too conventional and uninspired by comparison (and by comparison only)?

I don't listen to Gould anymore. Well, maybe once or twice a year, in a sentimental mood. Another paradox: his Bach performances are unique, yet outdated... and yet not outdated by a new generation of Bach pianists. Worn-out? But I'll always admire him and I certainly will miss his moronic vocalizations.

I don't give a damn what following anyone has. The only judgement I respect is my own. So, for me personally, it makes little difference if Gould recorded today, 20 years ago, 40 years ago, 80 years ago or when he would be 'taken seriously as an interpreter'. The recordings of his I cherish, the Bach gamba sonatas with Rose, the WTC, the Beethoven Bb concerto with Bernstein, the Ophelia Lieder with Schwarzkopf, the Wagner transcriptions (to pick a diverse list), will likely remain cherishable, since I'm quite certain none will do quite what he did with these pieces.

John

Thank heaven for small favors.

Rose...

Also my very favorite, especially because of GG at the piano.

Also don't forget the Bach 'piano' concertos. What amazes me about them is that the orchestra now sounds very 'old fashioned' but the piano playing and piano tone is remarkably fresh and timeless.

Mike

How is it to live in contempt of any other judgement than your own?

There's a difference between not having respect and having contempt, but to answer your question, respecting only your own judgement in matters aesthetic is the *only* way to live, and if you live any other way, I feel sorry for you.

John

And because of Rose, who joins in the Gouldian spirit admirably.

I have many favorites I didn't mention, and the keyboard concertos are among them.

John