Varda, another delectable: Bachs Little Fugue in g-minor BWV 578 performed by the late Helmut Walcha, a blind organist who was one of the foremost interpreters of Bachs organ music. He performs it on the organ at the Melk monastery, a Benedictine Abbey in Austria, west of Vienna. We were there in 1983, and I remembered that it had a beautifully frescoed ceiling and a wonderfully ornate staircase between the library and the church. The number of pieces that Walcha committed to memory was phenomenal. One of the keys to playing Bach is to know how to weigh counterpoint in a work; this Walcha does with stunning virtuosity. His brazen octaves and chords, his elegant ornamental work in the development, and the elasticity of his rhythms all make him a superior exponent of Bachian counterpoint. The fugue contains much variation in tempo, but in Walchas hands it all flows naturally, each of the four voices singing out in company with the others without missing a beat. Enjoy! EXPOSITION (0--:18) Soprano (:18--:40) Alto (:40--:58) Tenor (:58--1:14) Bass DEVELOPMENT (1:14--1:24) Episode (1:24--3:42) Development (3:42--4:14) Coda https://youtube/watch?v=xzXroGJZC1k
Posted on: Mon, 01 Dec 2014 00:36:54 +0000