Made at the age of 50, this is Pieter Wispelwey’s third
recording of the Cello Suites by J.S. Bach, and in very many
ways his most impressive. Both of his earlier versions can be
found on the Channel Classics label, and very good they are
too. His second recording already approached a closeness to
authenticity with its use of a Barak Norman baroque cello from
1710, and for this new version he uses a Peter Rombouts instrument,
also from 1710. The big difference in this case is that the
cello is equipped with gut strings and tuned to 392 Hz. This
results in tuning roughly a half-tone lower than usual, and
with lower tension in the strings this has a greater effect
that you might imagine.
The key to this set is the DVD which is included, “392,
Pieter Wispelwey and the Bach Cello Suites”. The ‘392’
refers of course to the pitch at which his instrument is tuned,
and this is a central aspect of how this performance is seen
by Wispelwey, and he demonstrates the clear differences between
instruments. The low tension in the strings makes the way the
music ‘speaks’ very different, and this is articulated
in performances which have a strong narrative feel and less
emphasis on the lyrical side of the music. The DVD is worth
the asking price for this set on its own, with plenty of fascinating
insights based on close research in and around Bach’s
life, as well as clips of live performances given in Oxford
- a marathon concert of all six suites in one concert. The sections
of this we are given only make me wish we were given the entire
concert on CD as well, but you can’t have everything.
Compared to the relatively restrained poetry of Steven Isserlis
on the Hyperion label (see review),
Wispelwey extends shapes, plays with pauses and silence, and
explores the resonance of the instrument to the full. The Allemande
of the Suite No. 1 is an example of this shaping of space,
taking time between phrases while allowing the strings to thrum,
something which happens a good deal less on a modern instrument
with wound metal strings. There is a nicely natural feel to
this kind of playing, and a grounding of long experience which
demonstrates a keen knowledge of what works and an avoidance
of what doesn’t. The low tuning results in a gruffer tone
to the usually mild and lyrical Sarabande of this suite,
Wispelwey sticking to the harmony notes a little longer, allowing
their tonality to speak, where too short a resonance sounds
as if it wouldn’t ‘work’. This can have a
more extreme effect further on, and listening blind to something
like the Sarabande of the Suite No. 3 you might
be forgiven for thinking it was an expertly played double bass
rather than a cello.
These differences are fascinating, but throw up questions as
well as new perspectives on familiar works. While there is superb
playing throughout this set, you might find it hard to get used
to the darker colours and ‘otherness’ of expression
coming from these performances. Wispelwey discusses the Prelude
of the Suite No. 4, concluding that the baroque cello
suits a much lighter touch, imitating fingers on the strings
of a lute rather than the pedals of an organ. This results in
something far less linear than what we are usually served up;
played slower as well as in a more separated way, the notes
gain an extra identity as well as establishing new relationships.
I for one relish the drama implied in the Prelude of
the Suite No. 5, but following the logical flow of the
music in such a movement can be a challenge, and these recordings
may not be the ideal place to start a journey of discovery into
J.S. Bach’s cello suites, though the ‘challenge’
is something which is in the very essence of these works, both
for performer and listener. The downward re-tuning of the upper
string in this fifth suite creates ‘graveyard’ associations,
and darkness abounds as in few other performances I could name.
The contrast of relief in the light and joy in the Suite
No. 6, played on a piccolo cello with an added upper E string
is palpable.
What also raises this release above the average in these works
is the excellent recording quality, which makes even the Isserlis
recording seem a bit dull and distant. Detailed and close, you
are embraced by warm, wooden sonorities, and can easily lose
yourself in the music. Fingers tapping on the fingerboard and
a certain amount of breathing are the side-effects of such an
up-front and personal position, but the benefits far outweigh
any blemishes, if such they are. Other perceived blemishes may
be those of intonation, but if you bear in mind that flats and
sharps can have different effects on a string instrument, and
in vocal and other kinds of music for that matter, then the
shifts in expectation and experience of certain notes becomes
more of a phenomenon of nature rather than any failure in technique.
These are intervallic relationships which have a life far more
free and animated than those fixed into the scales of a piano.
So yes, even if you know and love one or more complete recording
of J.S Bach’s Suites for cello solo, then you owe
it to yourself to acquire a copy of this release. The DVD deconstructs
and analyses in a very approachable way, and even if you think
you know plenty about these works this shows there is always
more to discover. If ever there was a recording which takes
us behind the notes of these pieces and adds to our understanding
of their qualities then this is the one. That these are deeply
satisfying performances and a marvellous recording seems an
almost incidental bonus.
Dominy Clements
see also review by Kirk
McElhearn
Masterwork Index: Bach
cello suites
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Pieter Wispelwey 