Bach: Glenn Gould Bach Edition

The box set is nicely organized and comes with a large, bound book, which adds value to the collection. The original artwork appears on each cheap sleeve. The CDs themselves are printed with the look from the original records. I'd prefer to have better cases with original liner notes that you can more easily read, but that's what the book is for.I have to rate this as I'd rate any other current recording. The fact is, they're all re-issues and some of the oldest ones have tape hiss or an instrument that was not in the best condition (we know Gould knew that and ignored the fact that his piano wasn't in the best shape.) So, my 4-stars are more for Glenn and the recording quality compared to what's available today. That said, Gould was a unique artist who helps many of us see Bach's music in new light. And for that, this collection is great in that its available organized all together in one set.I liked Gould's recordings from the 1970s the best; his concerto recordings with a "lush" ensemble were the most disappointing. Includes DVD interviews with Gould which clearly portray his deep intellect about music and, you might say, bizarre personality. Together, it's all a nice document and a nice companion to any books you may have read about Gould and his art.

Of the 44 CDs there are actually only 34 that are music. The rest is talk or videos glorifying Gould. While he is a great artist, his personality and views are irrelevant, from my point of view - I am only interested in the music - which on the whole is great. THe quality of sound is not always great but this is understandable as these are historical recordings. One problem from my point of view is that there is no concentrated list of the tracks on each of the discs. Not even on the discs themselves! which attempt to imitate the original vinyl records. Details of the discs are embedded in a big volume with a lot of verbiage (which I did not bother reading). It would be a simple and helpful mater to include a pamphlet with just details of CD tracks. One more minor items - the title is The complete Bach Collection. I suppose what is meant is the complete available Gould recordings. It is not the complete list of keyboard works by Bach. Furthermore non-Bach works, such as Beethoven concertos are superfluous.

This is a magnificent collection of Gould's work. The boxed set is the in itself superb - a cloth covered, very sturdy box with all the CDs and DVDs well numbered and marked for easy retrieval. The recordings are grand and offer such a wide range of Gould's carefully prepared recordings. One must be a fan of him to spend this much money perhaps, but if you love this take on Bach, the set will be a treasure. I look forward to years of listening pleasure from this. The text accompanying the recordings is also hard-bound and offers useful information. Someone spent a lot of care in designing this set of recordings. A library could well use this edition as well. The individual CD wrapper covers and end notes are taken from the original LP vinyls and one needs reading glasses to read the fine print, but preserving the original adds to the feel of the work.Really a fine purchase. I strongly recommend it - IF you are a fan of Gould's approach to Bach.

I'm just getting into this collection and have only been through about a third of it. Simply put, at the price they are selling this collection, it's a spectacular bargain. The CDs are well recorded as I can hear Glenn's humming (one of his idiosyncrasies) and I can hear his chair creak at times (this was used in lieu of a bench at least in his earlier recordings). Even though I'm about as old as dirt, I feel like a kid at Christmas. If you enjoy Bach, this is one collection to have. You won't be disappointed except that there is not more.One other item is that the CDs are not jammed into the sleeves as one would normally find in a collection such as this and come out easily to be placed into the CD tray. I was very pleased about that as I detest having to potentially damage a CD just to get it out of its paper sleeve.

It would be difficult to assign enough stars to this set. The coverage is magnificent, encompassing Gould's entire career and the individual recordings are pristine, perfectly revealing Gould's precise and exacting approach to Bach. Because of this breadth there are duplicates of several pieces, including at least 4 Goldberg Variations, from different stages of his career, including the notable 1954 and 1981 recordings. It is fascinating to examine these back to back to see how his interpretations evolved over time. The pairings for both the sonatas and concertos are excellent as well. And the pricing reduces to near-unbelievable per-disc price. An accompanying book includes liner notes and several additional articles. There are also several discs with interviews which are very revealing of Gould's approach to the music (and life as well). If ever there were a set to take along to a desert island this is it and you'd never be bored.

this is *how it should be done*, people. not perfect - yes, you need a magnifier to read the original liner notes, and i doubt many here will be overly excited w/ the german interview, but as i said elsewhere, the people who made this set obviously had the same love for gould/s bach the audience does, and has taken every care to make this *right*. i am amazed. a very professionally done book (not booklet). the dvds i haven/t reached yet. so many goldbergs. if you love gould/s bach, you will own this. the single greatest grouping of cds i/ve bought yet. i can *not* encourage this enough.

Following the previous success by Amazon issued in 2008 with 20 CDs, this set of Bach by Gould shall be a great hit. As one of a fan of JS Bach and G Gould, and though one who missed to get the previous one, I had a big chance to keep this in my CD rack. But I re-checked my CD rack, and I found a half of 44s was here on my rack. I remember I got them at 10 times higher price one by one. I feel sorry for the composer and the player and their music, sold many times in a different way. 5 Stars.

Glenn Gould was a cultural icon for Canada, but also world-renowned for his interpretations. His multiple recordings of the Goldberg Variations created storms, every time. I doubt there's been such a polarizing pianist, except perhaps Keith Jarrett, in the classical business. While a few people don't like Gould's (sometimes eccentric) take on Bach, most people (me included) love his work.It's hard to explain exactly why. I suppose the best explanation is that Gould doesn't just "play" Bach, he "feels" Bach. I had the pleasure of meeting Glenn several times, mostly when he would visit the CBC, and I saw him perform live a few times in concert halls and at the CBC. Meeting him in person showed him to be an intense, intelligent person, always perhaps a little eccentric (witness the infamous "bench"), but a genius undoubtedly.This box is a collection of all the Bach that Gould recorded over the years, mostly for Sony, Columbia, and the CBC. Each is a masterpiece on its own, and when he does the same pieces at different times, or live versus in concert, you can see into his interpretations. The CDs are well mastered from the analog masters, and there's a nice bonus in the six DVDs that are included. There's a few DVDs of him playing for the CBC, plus a couple of interview disks that delve into his interpretations and personality. Also in this box is a very good almost-200-page book that examples his life and music. The box itself is a fabric-like blue cover, very attractive. The box is quite larger, much taller than CDs so storing in a CD rack is out of the question. Wyhen you take off the lid, there's the book at the top, then, underneath, lined up in a row, are the CDs and DVDs. The book runs just under 200 pages, has tons of photos, and includes a nice new biography of Glenn Gould, as well as complete original liner notes from the LPs.I had almost all the 27 Columbia-sourced music CDs (which have original album facsimile sleeves) on either LP or original release CD, and almost all these recorded CDs are also in the Complete Original Jacket Collection, but the latter does not have the DVDs or the live concerts that are here. There's also three Colmbia special releases, 4 CDs from live radio and TV broadcasts (for the CBC). Are those extr amaterials alone worth the money of the box if you have the Original Jacket Collection? If you love Gould, then yes, of course. If you don't have the Original jacket Collection, which is now very expensive (waiting for a reissue at a reasonable price!), then you need to buy this Bach Edition. While Gould did some wonderful interpretations of other composers, it's Bach that made his name, and for which he will be synonymous forever.If you're not familiar with Gould, he is, to put it mildly, idiosyncratic. Many purists hated him when he released his first recording of the Goldbergs, mostly because he actually interpreted the music instead of just playing it. But many more people hailed Gould as a breath of fresh air, a wonderful interpreter of music that had become rote, and a superb pianist. If you don't know Gould, this is the best way to get to know him.The DVDs show their age, but they are well done. There's a complete presentation for television of the Goldberg Variations, as well as other Bach pieces done live. There's a previously-unreleased DVD of the complete "Well Tempered Listener" which ios entertaining, and there's the three interview CDs (audio only, of course) which explain Gould in more detail.This is a very nice box, with gems that you won't find easily elsewhere. Yes, it's a bit on the expensive side compared to some budget boxes release3d lately, but if you love Bach piano music, this is the only box you need.

Wer sich für den Kauf von "The Complete Bach Collection" mit dem Pianisten, Dirigenten, Musik- und Fernsehproduzenten, Drehbuchautor und Musik-schriftsteller Glenn Gould entschieden hat, hält ein Jahrhundertwerk in seinen Händen. Schon die Aufzählung der verschiedenen Tätigkeitsfelderdes im Jahre 1982 leider viel zu früh verstorbenen Kanadiers macht deutlich, dass die "Collection" mit immerhin 38 CDs und 6 DVDs nicht alleindie Musik des Thomaskantors wiedergeben will, sondern vielmehr als Zusammenschau des Lebenswerkes eines der ganz großen Künstler unserer Zeitin Ton und Bild verstanden werden muss. Der Firma SONY ist es zu verdanken, dass der Hörer - neben einem in englischer Sprache ausgezeichnetund informativ verfassten Begleitbuch - eine nahezu streng chronologisch geordnete Sammlung von Aufnahmen erhält, die von der legendären erstenInterpretation der "Goldberg Variationen" im Juni 1955 bis zu der abermaligen Einspielung desselben Klavierstücks im April 1981 reicht, wobeisich der Kreis seines Musikschaffens für Gould, ohne dass er es ahnen konnte, damit geschlossen hatte.Was erfährt der Hörer durch diese CD-Sammlung ? Er bekommt vor allem Kenntnis von der pianistischen Entwicklung Goulds, vom stürmisch-naivenmusikalischen Standpunkt hin zur analytisch-durchdachten, intelligenten und menschlich gereiften Interpretation, abzulesen an den Einspielungender "Goldberg Variationen" von 1955, 1959 (live in Salzburg) und 1981, aber auch an denen des "Italienischen Konzerts" (1959, 1981).Es ist also das vergleichende Hören aller Aufnahmen anzuraten. Dies wird dem interessierten Hörer viel Zeit und Arbeit abverlangen, wofür eraber mit neuem Wissen, fundamentalen Hörerlebnissen und einfach einem ungeheuren Vergnügen entlohnt wird.

All Gould at his best interpreting Bach in a way that only he could. For the Gould enthusiast, this is an ultimate collection. For the Bach collector, I would defer to Angela Hewitt whose interpretations are much more likely to reflect Bach's mindset.Both are great, but for different reasons.

Jeder ernsthafte Glenn Gould Verehrer und Sammler wird sämtliche CD-Inhalte in der ein - oder anderen Form bereits besitzen. Auch die ganz frühe Aufnahme der Goldberg Variationen des kanadischen Rundfunks von 1954 war unter dem CBC Label bereits problemlos erhältlich. Die Salzburger Live-Einspielung des Werkes gab es als unautorisierte und danach als Sony Veröffentlichung. Klanglich ist nichts remastered oder neu digitalisiert worden. So bleiben eigentlich "nur" die 40 Minuten unveröffentlichtes DVD Material. Das wirkliche DVD Highlight allerdings ist natürlich die komplette Aufnahme der Goldbergvariationen. Dieser "Musikfilm" bleibt für mich das eindrucksvollste und bewegendste Dokument einer pianistischen Darbietung überhaupt - war aber auch schon vorher erhältlich.Und dennoch - verflixt - ich habe mir die Box gekauft. Allerdings hat mir mein IPAD die Arbeit abgenommen - denn irgendwie scheint mein Finger auf der Schaltfläche "1Klick-Bestellung" gelegen zu haben. Aber ich bereue den Kauf nicht. Die Box kommt wirklich "edel" daher; sehr voluminös und in buchähnliches blaues Leinen gekleidet. Im Gegensatz zur 80 CDs umfassenden Jacket Collection ist das beiliegende Buch einer hochwertigen Sammlerbox angemessen. Herr Stegemann hat ein schönes mehrsprachiges Vorwort verfasst (auch in Deutsch abgedruck). Der Löwenanteil des Inhaltes bleibt allerdings rein englisch, bietet aber detaillierte Informationen zu jeder der 38 CDs.Die CDs und DVDs selbst liegen - wie das mittlerweile wohl üblich ist - ungeschützt in den Papphüllen.

Excellent collection of GG's Bach. The mini LP style sleeves saves space, the book is a good source ofinformation on GG and his style of Bach playing. I treat this edition as a subset of GG's complete originaljacket collection of 80 CDs