Fournier: Bach 6 Suites for Solo Cello (r 1960): Archiv 198 186/7/8, 3 indiv LPs

$

85

redgarnett Store ITEM DESCRIPTION:

With these 3 LPs from Archiv Production / Deutsche Grammophon (catalog numbers below, German pressings, silver/blue labels, stereo) one can collect complete Pierre Fournier's beautifully refined and searching accounts of Bach's Six Suites for Solo Cello BWV 1007-1012, recorded in the Beethoven-Saal, Hannover, during 20-22 and 28-29 December 1960.

These recordings were produced by Karl-Heinz Schneider and engineered by Heinz Wildhagen) – landmarks in the Bach discography and true gramophone classics.

Although not as rare as the original cloth box Archiv issue, these later re-issues arguably boast superior surfaces. Each jacket carries the original liner notes by Eric Dolfein – provided in German, English, and French – as well as complete discographic information.

Fournier played from the Urtext as edited by Paul Grummer and E.H. Muller von Asow, published in Vienna in 1944

The exact contents are as follows, with timings for the individual suites as follows:

Archiv 198 186

Suite No. 1 in G Major BWV 1007 – 18:40

Suite No. 2 in D minor BWV 1008 – 19:03

Archiv 198 187

Suite No. 3 in C Major BWV 1009 – 23:15

Suite No. 4 in E-flat Major BWV 1010 – 23:30

Archiv 198 188

Suite No. 5 in C minor BWV 1011 – 24:46

Suite No. 6 in D Major BWV 1012 – 27:00

Wrote Nicholas Anderson in the March 1989 issue of The Gramophone:

"Of all the great cellists I have heard playing Bach's six Cello Suites, BWV1007-12, either in the concert hall or in recordings of various kinds, Pierre Fournier came closer to the heart of the music, as I understand it, than almost any other. He made these recordings for Archiv in 1960 and they have seldom been out of the catalogue. Readers who prefer the charisma and extrovert flourishes of Tortelier (EMI), the penetrating though sometimes unstylish gestures of Casals (EMI References—reviewed on page 1512), or the brilliant but too often superficial readings of Schiff (EMI) and Maisky (DG) may be hard to win over to these concentrated, personally unassuming interpretations by Fournier.

"Fournier seems to me to have possessed all the virtues of his fellow cellists without yielding to any of their self-indulgences; irrelevant personal idiosyncrasies are never allowed to intrude these finely sustained performances. He could be brilliant in execution—his technique was second to none, as he proves throughout this set—profound in utterance, aristocratic in poise and wonderfully coherent in his understanding of Bach's articulation and phrases. We need look no further than the Prelude of the First Suite in G major to find the supreme artistry which characterizes each and every moment of these performances. To be sure, there are very occasionally notes which fail to reach their centre but they are few and far between and certainly Fournier's intonation compares favourably with that of some of his virtuoso companions. Fournier's rubato is held tightly in rein and when he does apply it it is in the interests of enlivening aspects of Bach's formal writing. Thus it is in the Preludes, where the music requires rhythmic freedom if it is not to be relegated to the ranks of mere study material, that Fournier demonstrates his intuition and fine sense of style most forcefully; the Preludes to the First and Third Suites provide good examples. Fournier can sparkle too, as he does in many of the faster dance-orientated movements such as courantes, gavottes, bourrees and so on; in the sarabandes, on the other hand, he invariably strikes a note of grandeur coupled with a concentration amounting at times—as in the sarabandes of Suites Nos. 2 and 3—almost to abstraction.

"Above all, Fournier's Bach playing is crowned with an eloquence, a lyricism and a grasp both of the formal and stylistic content of the music which will not easily be matched. Curiously, perhaps, it is the baroque cellist, Anner Bylsma on RCA who often provides close parallels with Fournier. Bylsma's tempos tend to be faster than those of Fournier—that, after all has been a trend in baroque music over the past 20 years or so—but his conception of the music shares ground with that of Fournier. All things considered, it is hardly surprising that these readings seem as fresh and as valid today as they did 25 or more years ago. Out and out purists, poor devils, may not be able to adjust to modern pitch, modern instrument and, in the case of Suites Nos. 5 and 6, the wrong instrument, but if that is so they are deserving more of compassion than censure. Fine recorded sound and strongly commended on virtually all counts."

Incidentally, the cover art for all three albums reproduces a detail from Matthäus Merian’s copper engraving showing the city of Köthen in the 17th Century.

CONDITON – 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 3 jackets is VERY GOOD- throughout. All three have minor bumping at corners, and in one case a 2” split to the top seam. However, there are no owners’ markings, or other faults and the albums remain solid, bright, and attractive – overall, still quite decent collector’s copies.

The condition of the 3 LP is near-MINT throughout and playback is superb in all 3 – overall, these rate as truly fine collector's copies.

PLEASE NOTE:
This LP has been carefully cleaned using a VPI cleaning machine. All LPs are provided with a new Nagaoka (or Nagaoka-style) inner sleeve. The images I've provided are of the actual item you are potentially bidding on - these are not stock images or images I've taken from other sites. Bid with confidence!

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