Customer Rating:  
Summary: A Bit Snooty
Comment: Her tone of voice in the masterclass portion rubs me the wrong way. She makes it sound as if she alone can intuit Bach properly. And much of her masterclass--though somewhat informative in terms of performance and historical practice--is a bit sophomoric in scope and ultimately a waste of time and DVD space.
The performance portion is only slightly more enjoyable. I guess after sitting through her seemingly endless masterclass I'm not much of an Angela Hewitt fan. I'm probably gonna review my Hewitt CDs and decide if I need to replace them with other bach interpreters.
For the record, I'd enjoy the DVD a lot more if there was no masterclass (and a slightly longer concert program) attached. Currently I can't finish viewing it, knowing her approach to Bach performance and interpretion.
My two cents.
Customer Rating:
Summary: It's all about Angela...
Comment: Angela Hewitt in her bid to out do Glenn Gould must be commanded for her bold undertaking even if one wonders about the motives. Playing Bach live is a very courageous endeavor.
In this well filmed but quite long DVD, Angela Hewitt is kindly condescending to teach us, common mortals, about Bach but mostly to make us understand why we would not be able to reach her pinnacle: at the top of the Bach mountain, there is only room for one and even Glenn would have to concede... Not once, he is mentioned! Considering that Bach's playing in the XX century truly exploded with him, it is somewhat surprising in my opinion. Not that Gould's playing should not be exempt of criticism, but his contribution to Bach music is invaluable, like it or not.
Of course the basics, the backgrounder about Baroque music style and Bach in particular is presented and this is good: the various editions, the ornementation, the parallel with string players, the differences between Harpsichord and modern piano -she really hates these harpsichordists doesn't she?-. All this is fine.
But after 148 minutes filmed in the Fazioli factory, the equivalent of a surgery block clean manufacturing grounds compared to the Steinway digs for instance, one really wonders what they'll take home and work on.
Did we learn about how to play Bach, the rules of articulations or did we learn about Ms. Hewitt own cooking and given her tone, how unlikely we would come close to having the imagination, taste, talent she possesses in order to approach this music.
She mentions Ottawa Canada, but one feels she is now safely back from the "colony" to the civilized motherland...
The problem is that Ms. Hewitt is unaware of some recent developments that have exposed rules of small speech like articulation and their reasons, their relations with the symbolism of Bach music (Teregulov 1993, Nosina 1991, 1993 re-issued in 2006).
Therefore she presents her own interpretation of rules -my father did this...- and often goes against the grain. For instance she explains that Bach's markings are supposed to be taken as rules in a piece when they appear at one spot while in fact, his markings were signaling a particular character, even an exception to the known rules, those very rules known to Kappellmeisters and thus never written on keyboard scores but clearly indicated on orchestral scores or string scores. Dear Daniel Muller-Shott is obliging with an overdone Baroque sound inflating and deflating and his eyes betray the devotion to the great priestess of the cult...
So as a result Ms Hewitt often brushes over rules and talks more about her own figuring out what works for her than truly offering students regardless of their level, real, workable rules that universally enhance the polyphony in their playing.
Thus in her bid to become the Bach interpreter of our troubled time, Ms. Hewitt indeed in this DVD reveals herself to non musicians something her playing anyway does to musicians who know the rules.
It is well filmed although sometimes the reflection of the scripter can be seen on the gleaming Fazioli.
A curiosity but one to consume with moderation...
Customer Rating:
Summary: A modern Bach legend shares her insights
Comment: Hyperion produced this two-disc DVD set as part of Miss Hewitt's 07/08 Bach World Tour (bachworldtour). It is shot on location at the Fazioli piano factory in Italy (Hewitt highly favors these pianos). Even if you are purely a listener, this nicely done production will take you to a new depth of discovery and appreciation into the legendary music of Bach and Angela Hewitt.
Disc 1 (148 min) is instructional with Hewitt demonstrating various techniques, strategies and advice in 7 chapters (see list below). I suppose it is something akin to her Bach master's classes. She uses numerous musical motiff examples from the WTC and much of Bach's keyboard repertoire to show what she means. These alone are endlessly fascinating to watch the pianist's ease, fluidity and nuance. She often compares to how an amatuer would play it ... and of course how the she would approach it. One is immediately impressed with Hewitt's love and discipline with this music. She is also a great educator, weaving both technical detail and personal stories in the lessons. The camera work is quite good, showing at a slight angle from the right the keyboard work of both hands up close. Up this close, you can see just how strong her steel-spring-like fingers are for playing Bach like she does! Of course she makes it look effortlessly.
Disc 2 (62 minutes) is a live performance at the Fazioli factory auditorium - where of course she plays a Fazioli piano. These pianos are noted for their super-fast action, complex yet brilliant and clear harmonics and the addition of a special, forth pedal for enhanced dynamic shading. Of course she makes Bach sing and sound beautiful on it. The camera work again is good allowing one to see most of the action unhindered, although at times of sections of fast passagework (like in the chromatic fantasy/fugue) the camera is more on the pianist than the keyboard. The sound is rich and full as is her playing, making for an impressive concert.
A small missed opportunity perhaps was not getting a 'virtual tour' of how they make pianos at the Fazioli factory, whose instruments in various stages of assembly are in the background during the shoot. Side bar: for piano afficiantos, there is a marvelous little chapter about the Fazioli factory in the charming memoir, "The Piano Shop on the Left Bank" by Thad Carhart.
DISC 1
Chapter 1: Introduction
- Early beginnings
- Bach on the modern piano
Chapter 2: The Essentials
- Phrasing
- Singing tone
- Articulation
- Imitating bowing
- Gamba sonata with D. Muller-Schott
- Fingering
- The left hand
- Pedalling
Chapter 3: Intrepretation
- Tempo
- Dynamics
- Rythymic alterations
- Rubato
- Keys
Chapter 4: The Dance in Bach
- Dance in Bach's music
- Dance and tempo
Chapter 5: Learning a Fugue
- Articulation
- Fingering
- Intrepretation
Chapter 6: Ornamentation
- Basic rules
- Adding ornaments
Chapter 7: Practical Advice
- Editions
- Practicing
- Memorizing
- Performing
DISC 2 - CONCERT PERFORMANCE
1. Partita No. 4 in D major
2. Italian Concerto in F major
3. Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue in D minor
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![Bach Performance on the Piano [DVD Video] Tracks:](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31%2BuOZ-a9YL._SL160_.jpg)
