Bach

Alexandre Tharaud is one of the most versatile pianists, who time and again transcends the boundaries of the most diverse genres. With the album Bach Tharaud, the world-class French pianist now follows in the footsteps of one of the most famous composers of all time. But with this classic too, Alexandre Tharaud transcends genre boundaries. The pianist has transcribed pieces such as a choir movement from Bach's Johannes Passion, a Siciliano from a flute sonata or a Bourrée from a lute suite for his instrument. In doing so, Tharaud follows Bach's own tradition; as an admirer of Antonio Vivaldi, the composer arranged his orchestral works into organ concertos. Alexandre Tharaud also included existing piano arrangements in the program, such as the chorale "Erkenne mich, mein Hüter" from the Matthäus Passion. Bach must not have been able to shake off the longing, intimate melody of the original hymn for some time, as he incorporated it into other works. Bach's works were admired by music connoisseurs more than those of almost any other composer and were also arranged by other composers. Charles Gounod, for example, developed his popular "Ave Maria" based on Bach's Prelude and Fuga Nr. 1 in C groot, merging two different musical eras.