Barok op zondagmiddag: Goldberg-variaties door Justin Taylor

Justin Taylor

Justin Taylor is regarded as one of the most striking young voices in historically informed performance practice. He played piano and harpsichord from a young age, and studied both instruments at the conservatory. He has a penchant for re-evaluating forgotten early music, which he does, among other things, with his own ensemble, Le Consort. The French musician of American origin has released over a dozen CDs, including a beautiful excursion on a pianino with music by Chopin – an instrument virtually identical to that of Chopin himself. This afternoon, he sits at a harpsichord in a Baroque masterpiece: Bach's Goldberg Variations .

Bach's Goldberg Variations

In 1955, a recording by Canadian pianist Glenn Gould shook the world awake: he performed Bach's Goldberg Variations , an absolute masterpiece that had been relatively unknown until then. The variations constitute a series of architectural perfection in a combination of intellect and emotion. A lullaby for a German count in whose service Bach's pupil Johann Goldberg was? No, this 'Rubik's Cube of ingenuity and architecture' ( NPR radio ) is the pinnacle of the art of variation.