Bach on the Edge

The joy of experimentation was a central characteristic of Bach's compositional thinking: the striving to continually push the boundaries of musical forms and the possibilities of instruments and voice - in service of a perfection that is both aesthetic and spiritual. The selection of works on the second solo album of harpsichordist Cristiano Gaudio, whose debut recording was awarded a Diapason d'Or and the Choc de l'Année by the magazine Classica, is fed by this spirit. From the dizzying virtuosity of the Chromatische Fantasie und Fuga to the contrapuntal density of the Ricercare à 6 from the Musikalisches Opfer, from the art of transcription to the "twelve-tone" closing fugue of the first part of the Wohltemperiertes Klavier, Bach's music unfolds here as an intellectual adventure - and as a physically tangible boundary experience.