Instrumental, Piano Solos, Bach, J S (composer)

With the exception of the ‘Black Pearl’ variation, which lasts almost ten minutes, this is one of the fastest sets I have ever heard, yet it’s also one of the most enjoyable. Ólafsson draws... — BBC Music Magazine, December 2023, 5 out of 5 stars (Performance) / 4 out of 5 stars (Recording)More…

Under Mahan Esfahani’s fleet fingers, and even fleeter imagination, the toccatas positively fly. — BBC Music Magazine, October 2019More…

I expected this to be good; but just how good it was was still a surprise…Ólafsson creates a ravishing musical sequence. Every track has its own allure, and many reflect a virtuosity which is... — BBC Music Magazine, Christmas 2018, 5 out of 5 starsMore…

This is a set that takes its seat confidently at the top table; and in places is touched with genius. Underpinning Lim's approach is a playfulness that animates even the most arcane examples... — BBC Music Magazine, March 2026, 5 out of 5 starsMore…

With the exception of the ‘Black Pearl’ variation, which lasts almost ten minutes, this is one of the fastest sets I have ever heard, yet it’s also one of the most enjoyable. Ólafsson draws... — BBC Music Magazine, December 2023, 5 out of 5 stars (Performance) / 4 out of 5 stars (Recording)More…

The sequence works well as a recital-like experience, and also as a vehicle for Hough’s comprehensive mastery of his art...The idiom of his own ‘Vida breve’ Sonata, with its cogent sweep and... — BBC Music Magazine, March 2021, 5 out of 5 stars (Performance) / 4 out of 5 stars (Recording)More…

Every phrase, every note of this Op. 109 sounds deeply thought-through...This disc continues the progress of Ólafsson as one of the great individual pianists of our time, imaginative and original... — BBC Music Magazine, February 2026, 5 out of 5 starsMore…

We don’t normally associate Daniil Trifonov with Bach, so this recording is a revelation…Many pianists radiate effort in their attempts to make intellectual sense of The Art of Fugue: Trifonov’s... — BBC Music Magazine, Christmas 2021, 5 out of 5 starsMore…

As with his previous period-instrument ventures, Schiff opens up a new world and thoroughly adjusts his temperament, his ‘pianism’ and his artistry to it. — Gramophone Magazine, April 2023More…

For this listener at least, Anderszewski’s interpretations and juxtapositions have a compelling inevitability; but the other reason for the recording’s success lies in his pianism. Anderszewski’s... — BBC Music Magazine, April 2021, 5 out of 5 starsMore…