Search - Alex Masi :: Steel String Bach

Weirdly charming

J. C Clark | Overland Park, KS United States | 03/25/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I once read a review of a particularly dull Bach performance describing it as if the pianist played a sewing machine instead of a piano. No such troubles here. This is energetic, vibrant, and with a variety of tempi that is mostly invigorating, though at times perplexing.It is a shame he begins with the famous Toccata & Fugue, since the difference between this and an organ is so apparent. But once you get into the swing of the sound, it grows and grows on you, as the logic behind his choices becomes clear. The other pieces are all more enjoyable for me, though if he had ended with the T&F rather than started it might have worked better.

The sound is bizarrely close; sometimes, with headphones feeling as if it is coming from your head into the headphones rather than the other way around. But the recording is certainly "present", and the sound is mostly very good.I find this a delightful accompaniment to work; I love to listen to this performance as I write. It enhances and builds my thought process. Bach can indeed be hypnotic, and this is an instrument that will never let you fail to hear its echoes and overtones."