BACH Trios
Yo-Yo Ma, Cello
Chris Thile, Mandolin
Edgar Meyer, Bass
Nonesuch 7559-79392-0 / *****
The trio of cellist Yo-Yo Ma,
mandolinist Chris Thile and bassist Edgar Meyer make no pretensions about the
authenticity of their album of music by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). All
the pieces are co-written arrangements for their peculiar combination of
instruments. The performances however sound unusually idiomatic, as if
contemporary with the Baroque period itself.
Ma and Thile alternate between and
share the melodic lines while Meyer provides the just as vital backing, with
much counterpoint in between. Thus works like the Trio Sonata No.6 in G
major (BWV.530, originally for organ)
and Sonata in G minor (BWV.1029, for viola da gamba and keyboard), the
two longest works and both in three
movements, make for excellent showcases.
Also significant is the Prelude and
Fugue in E minor (BWV.548, for organ), known as “The Wedge” because
of the widening intervals in its fugue, which receives an absorbing performance
despite sounding quite different from the original.
More familiar are the Chorale
Preludes Wachet auf (Sleepers Awake), Ich ruft zu Dir
(I Call To Thee) and Erbarme Dich mein (Have Mercy On Me),
as well as selections from The Well-Tempered Clavier and The Art Of
Fugue. Both spiritual and vivacious, this enjoyable album yet again
demonstrates the timelessness of Bach.
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