Thanks to the Bach anniversary year, we've enjoyed a bonanza of interpretations of the master. One of the most honestly compelling--Murray Perahia's account of the Goldberg Variations--uniquely underscored the fundamental subtext behind all the celebration: the wondrous inexhaustibility of Bach's creative imagination. Perahia has come to a new understanding of Bach in the full prime of his career, and his first recording of this monument communicates the wealth of his insights with color, depth, and subtly charged poetry. --Thomas May

2009-04-18 -- 5/5:: Simply Beautiful
The Goldberg Variations occupy such an exalted place in the keyboard repertoire that it is sometimes lost on the pundits that this music is first and foremost meant to be enjoyed rather than worshipped.

And how I enjoyed this recording, which introduced me to the Goldberg Variations. I had not been a fervent fan of Bach, and had found pieces such as the Well Tempered Clavier tedious. But when I listened to this recording straight through for the first time, when the Aria returned at the end as if carrying with it a lifetime of memories and emotions, I felt I had completed a great journey, and a feeling of satisfaction washed over me.

I have since listened to many other recordings of the Goldberg Variations, and at least in my mind Perahia's remains the most beautiful. Simply beautiful.

2009-04-14 -- 5/5:: Unparalleled vision and depth.
Perahia's recording took me some time to appreciate due to my prior conception of the Goldberg Variations, which I now realize to have been astoundingly inadequate. This is such a nuanced perforance that at first you might feel cheated of the sheer power and deliberate nature that many other recordings offer. Many have made such shocking statements on the surface that you may have not realized what a three dimensional work the Goldberg Variations really are. Perahia exposes new layers! His unconventional (yet impeccable) phrasing is the key to illuminating previously unrevealed rhythmic patterns and, dare I say, harmonies. Somewhere Bach is smiling.

Now, usually, when I hear reviewers boasting of 'clarity', 'purity', and the likes, I know the listening experience will end with me ripping my hair out. But not to worry, here it is not tedious for a moment. As others have mentioned, there is a great forward momenum created by Perahia's recognition of dance forms in the variations. He is less adamant than say, Gould, in this recognition...but I feel this recording is much more intellectually balanced as a result.

2008-10-25 -- 4/5:: Strong in architecture but missed some of the substance
I heard Murray Perahia performed this monumental work live in an October 2000 recital. Even though I am a big fan of his and this work, I found myself wanting more that was not in that performance. I have his recording of the work and have listened to it many times over the years and still found myself a bit under-whelmed. I have always admired Perahia's unerring sense of poetry, whether performing Chopin or Scarlatti. In fact, it was his recording of the Handel suites and Scarlatti sonatas that made me think that he can do wonders with the Goldberg Variations.

As always, his technical commands are as impressive as you can find in any of his recordings. He played the Variations with strong sense of rhythmic drive that one expects from Gould (1981 and 1955), the emphasis on architecture that one finds in Tureck (VAI and EMI), and some of the colorings that are plentiful in Hewitt's interpretation. The strong sense of forward momentum of Perahia's interpretation robs some of the beauty and character of the individual variations and the work as a whole. In almost every variation, I yearn for the colors and dynamic gradations as well as the sense of joy, pathos, reflection and even mania that are evident in Hewitt's recording.

Undoubtedly, this is a good recording of the Goldberg Variations but it is flawed by not having enough humanity in it. Angela Hewitt's interpretation surpasses Perahia's or any other piano recording of this work I have heard so far.

2008-03-27 -- 5/5:: Perahia at his best
This is one of the most beautiful performances of the Goldberg Variations ever. Perahia allows the listener to hear the music anew, offers a definitive interpretation, but always gives prominence to Bach. For me this is a much more satisfying performance than Gould's, which amazingly still has its cult devotees. Gould's Goldberg is about Gould, not about Bach. Perahia's Goldberg is about Music.

2008-03-27 -- 5/5:: A Masterpiece!
This CD captures the soul of Bach's Goldberg Variations like nothing else I have heard. If you are searching for music that will make your heart, soul and mind evolve to a new level of music appreciation, you simply must purchase this CD. After listening to Murray Perahia play the Bach's Goldberg Variations I will purchase anything he has recorded.