Search - Johann Sebastian Bach, Lionel Rogg :: Bach: Toccata & Fugue in D minor & other favorite organ works

Good budget disc

12/31/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Decent performance at a very low price. Bass quantity and performance isn't quite like my Verany and Telarc discs, but still enjoyable. I'm impressed with the diversity, a couple of chorales, fugues, and a Bach/Vivaldi concerto. However, I'd skip this one if price isn't a consideration and get a higher quality disc with similar selections."

The "Other" Works Stand Out

J. Desoto | Irvine, CA USA | 09/11/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This CD has many wonderful organ pieces. In fact, _every_ piece is an ocean of musical genius. And though I agree with the preceding reviewer--viz., that the recording is wanting in a few respects--I find the organ's recorded tonality to be "good," overall. However, for someone who has never heard a lot of the organ, the first few listenings may be trying. (Most people, in my experience, find that a little organ goes a long way; a CD spotlighting the organ may be a too much of a singular thing for those people.) And for those who simply do not care for the organ (descriptions such as "funeral music" come to mind), you will probably not find any new fascination with the instrument on this CD.But this CD does offer a dynamic range of Bach's organ music: "Nun Komme Der Heiden Heiland" is especially sober (as they are between "the" Toccata and Fugue and Bach's Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, the solemnity of both chorales is compounded), while Bach's concerto after Vivaldi is especially lively; and a careful listen to Bach's fugues is always a rewarding endeavor. Lionel Rogg interprets certain pieces in a manner with which I do not always agree (i.e., the toccatas); but the slight variations from orthodoxy have merit, for the listener may hear Bach's music in a new--and possibly enlightening--way."