Szigeti: Bach Solo Violin Sonatas & Partitas - Vanguard HM 54-56 (3LP box set)
$
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Description
redgarnett Store
ITEM DESCRIPTION:
This fine 3LP box set from Vanguard · The Bach Guild (HM 54/55/56, US pressing, second issue – "Historical Anthology of Music" label, mono – no stereo edition exists) features the legendary Joseph Szigeti in Bach's Six Sonatas & Partitas for Solo Violin BWV 1001-1006, "recorded under the auspices of the Bach Guild" at Columbia 30th Street Studio, New York during 1955-56, a landmark in the Bach discography.
These remarkable readings were born of a lifetime's experience, and if Szigeti is occasionally outclassed technically, he is seldom matched in insight, music-making of a pure nobility, and quite superbly recorded, the violin not overly spotlit. Though not the original issue, this later edition arguably offers smoother surfaces.
Wrote the outstanding musician and critic Jed Distler for ClassicsToday:
"Joseph Szigeti was in his early 60s when he recorded Bach's solo sonatas and partitas in 1955/56 for the Bach Guild. Though past his technical prime, Szigeti's artistry and musicianship communicate on many levels. It's not difficult to listen through moments of raspy bowing or tremulous intonation to perceive the wealth of rhythmic sophistication and inflections of tone, articulation, and phrase that give these performances awesome textural and emotional variety. He generates excitement in quicker movements like the G minor sonata's Presto, E major partita's Preludio, and B minor partita's Double not through speed alone but rather through phrase groupings and strategic accents that keep his steady tempos from lapsing into predictable, metronomic patterns. Szigeti does this to even more elaborate and spiritual effect in his spacious treatment of the Allemandes, most of the huge C major sonata, and of course, in the imposing D minor Chaconne.
To give widely spaced intervals their maximum impact, Szigeti often allows them a little more time, and he uses dynamic gradations to ensure pivotal harmonic moments their fullest due, like the haunting trills in sixths that conclude the A minor sonata's opening Grave. In the same sonata's Andante, Szigeti sounds like two distinct violinists, one playing the eighth-note accompaniment at a steady, hushed level, the other virtually orchestrating the melody in specific points of color and accent.
"Of course there are other ways to play this music, and some listeners may prefer suaver, more elegant technicians such as Arthur Grumiaux, whose classic 1962 Philips traversals appeared concurrently with the Szigeti set's initial LP release. With Szigeti, however, each rehearing brings something new to my appreciation of these inexhaustible works. The mono sonics haven't aged a bit, despite several noticeable ambient changes that betray splice points. Essential listening."
The exact discographic details are as follows:
Sonata No. 1 for Violin Solo in G minor ?WV 1001
1. Adagio 5.12
2. Fuga 5.51
3. Siciliana 3.51
4. Presto 3.44
(rec. 17/18 October 1955)
Sonata No. 2 for Violin Solo in A minor ?WV 1003
1. Grave 5.21
2. Fuga 8.30
3. Andante 6.19
4. Allegro 5.40
(rec. 17/18 October 1955)
Sonata No. 3 for Violin Solo in C Major BWV 1005
1. Adagio 5.57
2. Fuga 11.36
3. Largo 3.58
4. Allegro 3.43
(rec. 17/18 October 1955)
Partita No. 1 for Violin Solo in B minor ?WV 1002
1. Allemande 3.21
2.Double 3.26
3. Courant? 2.48
4. Double 3.45
5. Sarabande 4.09
6. Double 2.34
7. Tempo di bourree 4.21
8. Double 3.39
(rec. 1 July 1955)
Partita No. 2 for Violin Solo in D minor ?WV 1004
9. Allemande 3.13
10. Couranta 3.36
11. Sarabande 3.32
12. Gigue 4.21
13. Chaconne 16.07
(rec. 18/20 October 1955)
Partita No. 3 for Violin Solo in E major ?WV 1006
1. Preludio 3.57
2. Loure 4.18
3. Gavotte en Rondeau 3.23
4. Menuetto I e II 5.39
5. Bourrèe 1.41
6. Giga 1.57
(rec. 2 March 1956)
Incidentally, on the inside of the box top are superlative liner notes by Sidney Finklestein, printed in English only.
CONDITION – PLEASE READ VERY CAREFULLY:
The gradations of condition I use are as follows: MINT, Near-Mint, Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor.
The condition of the box is VERY GOOD. There is some shelfwear, more so at corners, but that is all. There are no corner breaks, seamsplits, owners markings, bends, or other defects and the box remains solid and presentation worthy – overall, a very good collector's copy.
The condition of the 3 LPs is EXCELLENT to near-MINT throughout. I believe this to be an unplayed copy, though I cannot guarantee this. Visually, they retain a high gloss and are free of spindle trails, though there are paper sleeve marks. In terms of sound, surfaces are not completely silent (thus, I have not rated it as MINT), but really they are very good. If you must a flawless copy, then do not buy this set. Overall, these LPs rate as fine collector's copies.
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