András Schiff
Bach: Six Partitas
ECM New Series
Rating: 5/5

THE decision to set Bach's seminal Opus 1 in the unorthodox order of 5th-3rd-1st-2nd-4th-6th (according to ascending keys, every major key thus followed by a minor) is the cornerstone of yet another bastion of musical intellect by András Schiff. The famed Reidstadl venue in Neumarkt is the inspirational icing on the cake, imbuing this, the pianist's second recording of the suites, with the vitality of a concert performance. Though typically scholarly in its approach, Schiff also finds musical space for real personal expression in his phrasing and movement, the perfectly weighted moments of anticipation as exciting as the most vivacious of dances, in which Schiff reveals exhilarating rhythmic energy.