All You Need is Bach

If you know of Cameron Carpenter then you already know he's a very controversial organist. Mr. Carpenter is a classically trained organist and a graduate of the Julliard music school in New York City. Mr. Carpenter has an incredible keyboard technique and facility - there's nothing, it would seem, written for the keyboard that he cannot play. He also has a facility for composition. Whether you are a fan of Mr. Carpenter or not, you will immediately become aware of his remarkable technical talents from the outset of his playing.Serious, or so-called "classical" organ music, was written for real pipe organs, typically found in churches, and spans a vast repertoire that is over 500 years old. The organ and its music is probably one of the oldest "classical" instruments that man has devised and that has survived the many centuries. Some of the greatest Western composers such as J.S.Bach and others have written some of the greatest compositions for the organ. Bach's organ compositions are considered masterpieces of the literature and for many reasons all budding organists come up against his compositions from the very beginning of their studies.Unfortunately, in modern times the audience for the organ is significantly less than it was 100 years ago, and certainly nothing compared to when the instrument was in its hey-day in the Baroque and later in the mid and later parts of the 19th century when it experienced a revival thanks to composer Felix Mendelssohn. One could also say similar for more main-stream classical music for opera, symphony, etc. though of course there is still an audience for these areas in classical music.Having said that, let me say that the reason I preface this review is because if you are expecting a typical approach and treatment to the organ music contained on this disc, which is all Bach, you will be either delighted, repulsed, or a combination of the two, by what you hear. And the very interesting notes that come within the booklet will also warn that what you are about to hear may be considered heresy from the standpoint of generally accepted performance practice of these compositions. In addition to mostly organ compositions, there's also a non-organ piece, the French Suite Nbr 5 in G Major, that Mr. Carpenter transcribed for the organ that is quite remarkable to hear. So there are no punches pulled with this CD and you've been forewarned.In that regard Mr. Carpenter seems to feel a need to break away from traditional approaches to organ performance in favor of his own "new and improved" versions of what these compositions should sound like - and that could apply to just about anything he plays on the organ. It would seem that Mr. Carpenter can't play anything, by any composer, without having to add his own eccentricities and whether you find those eccentricities appealing or not only you can be the judge of.The late and great Virgil Fox, who was also a virtuoso at the organ and also had a penchant for what he thought were "improvements" to the compositions of Bach performance. Virgil's sins were restricted to applying ritardando and saccharine registrations to Bach's music in order to bring out its "emotional" aspect and to make it "more appealing" to a generally wider audience that was not familiar with the organ in general and organ music of Bach in particular. In contrast, Mr. Fox's early recordings were solid and well performed examples of Bach and other organ composers. A similar statement can probably be made regarding Mr. Carpenter's playing, in that he is certainly capable of playing Bach organ compositions cleanly and unobtrusively, but you will be hard pressed to find such performances by him. What you will easily find instead are performances that are certainly unique and so fast in terms of tempo that your head will spin.Without getting into too much detail, the compositions on the CD are varied and interesting and range from some of the smallest of Bach's compositions for keyboard, such as the Inventions, through two major large-scale organ works, the Passacaglia and Fugue in C Minor BWV 582, and the not too often played Prelude & Fugue in B Minor BWB 544, and also an orchestral composition, the French Suite Nbr 5. What's even more interesting - if that's the word - is to hear what Mr. Carpenter does with them, or to put it another way, what he does TO them. All of the organ composition on the disk are from Bach's well-known organ literature with the only liturgical composition being the beautiful - and difficult - chorale prelude O Mensch, bewein dein Sünde gross BWV 622 ("O Man Bewail They Grievous Sin") from the Orgelbüchlein ("Little Organ Book"), a book of 46 organ chorales for the Lutheran church year. While the 46 chorales were written by Bach for instructional purpose, he spared no technical difficulty or aesthetic and harmonic beauty in their creation. One can sort of compare them to the piano etudes of Chopin in that the etudes were written by Chopin to emphasize certain technical difficulties to be overcome - but no one would say that the etudes are dull, boring, plain old exercises, quite the contrary. The Chopin etudes are musical masterpieces of great expression and profound beauty and introspection. And so it is with the 46 organ chorales though more in tune with their time and place .Mr. Carpenter, plays most of the compositions on the CD at a very rapid tempo; in some cases the very fast tempos contribute to the excitement, but all too often, in spite of Mr. Carpenters astounding technique, sometimes the rhythmic clarity and integrity is marred. Ironically, Mr. Carpenter plays the O'Mensch chorale at a typical - yes remarkably typical - tempo and does a decent job with the ornaments which are difficult to play properly - something most organists do not do either and is one reason why this chorale is difficult to perform properly. His performance of two Bach trio sonatas is a technical marvel but he plays them so fast that one of the three voices (in the keyboards) are often lost in the fabric of the music.The Inventions do have a kind of crazy, manic aspect to them. Perhaps Bach wrote them when he was smoking "something", whatever that something was in his day if you get my meaning. If you're familiar with the Inventions, then you might like what he "does to" Invention Nbr 8. Mr. Carpenter has of course recognized and latched onto the maniacal quality with Invention Nbr 8 and has given it a new twist that I thought was interesting and amusing.However, what he does to the two major organ works, the B Minor Prelude & Fugue BWV 544 and the Passacaglia and Fugue in C Minor BWV 582 I will not go into, but suffice it to say, Mr Carpenter has, in my opinion, removed all the intrinsic beauty and majesty inherent in these majestic compositions and has replaced those attributes with his own peculiar brand of "new and better". Yet in spite of what has been done to these two compositions with registration and performance oddities, their intrinsic beauty manages to come through. You may or may not like their treatment here so you be the judge.Track 13 which is the Gigue of the French Suite Nbr 5 on the disk is quite a tour de force of technique and playing (though with rhythmic inconsistencies) - with a quite rousing Gigue, as it should be.Though I'm not crazy about the registration choices Mr. Carpenter makes, they do work when he keeps the playing in a more traditional vein. When he strays things tend to sound odd. And aside from some "whacky" registration, my biggest displeasure is that if you're going to play super fast, as Mr. Carpenter prefers, then there's still an obligation that all the rhythmic integrity of a composition remain intact. This is not always the case: While the playing of the trio sonatas is, aside from some of the eccentricities of embellishment, remarkable and solid, the playing of the Gigue (track 13) of the French Suite Nbr 3 has rhythmic issues that blur the perception of a clear and consistent rhythmic pulse in spite of the remarkable playing. Also, Mr. Carpenter seems to have a predilection for heavy pedal reed stops: Such stops can of course be wonderful, but only when used sparingly and in their proper place and time in the scheme of the music.The recording and the organ: In Bach trio sonatas all voices have equal importance and need to be clearly heard, regardless of how you register the individual voices. The mic setup for trio sonata Nbr 3 - if there was a setup - is really poor: only two voices, the pedal and one keyboard part, could be clearly heard while the remaining 3rd part on one of the keyboards is buried and often hard to hear. And unfortunately, Mr Carpenter uses a registration for one of the keyboard voices that does not come through. This is where the recording engineer could have corrected the issue. On the recording the reed stops really dominate - and often destroy - the clarity of the voices and although this is not a fault of the recording per se, and really a performance choice, the recording engineer and producer should have caught this - but then again, Mr. Carpenter I would presume gave a final approval to the disc, so who is at fault? As for Mr. Carpenter's $1,000,000 plus custom organ, designed by M & O (Marshall & Ogletree) - well you be the judge. The firm of M & O builds, in my opinion, the best electronic versions of fine pipe organs. The firm's Opus 1 is installed at Trinity Church in lower Manhattan New York City after the 9/11 attack at the World Trade center fallout severely damaged the original pipe organ. My one criticism of the pedal division on the Custom Touring organ, at least on this recording, is that at certain times there is a distinctly artificial or "electronic" quality to the sound of the pedals, and that is not typical of other M & O organs.Let me close by saying that if you're looking for traditional performances of the compositions on this CD look elsewhere as there are many excellent examples to choose from. And to a great extent Mr. Carpenter's performance of the trio sonatas, even though they are very quickly played, and the French Suite, a challenge to play on the organ, are wonderful to hear, particularly the Gigue of the French Suite, in spite of my comments on the rhythmic issues. Overall, there's a lot on this disk that will simply amaze and delight you, especially if you're an organist. So, If you're looking to hear something totally different with these compositions and can disregard the irreverent approach taken in some of the major organ works, then you'll enjoy this CD very much. I have to admit I prefer more traditional performances, but I did enjoy much of what is on the CD and my head was spinning from the sheer speed of these performances.

I love Cameron Carpenter. I've seen him live 5 times now. He delivers. My mind never gets bent but opened. I'm a well trained classical musician and I stipulate that he brings something new to everything he takes up. Not always better, my opinion only, but always new. He's undeniably brilliant mentally, creatively and especially technically. He's reintroduced me to works I thought I'd heard all of the possibilities of. But as it was only musical conventions that were all taught wherever we matriculate that were in the way he, of course, blew right through them to newness. Again, newness is not necessarily better. It's entirely up to you to decide. I will say that I have all of his recordings including the brilliant Pictures at an Exhibition. This recording is not my favorite. The great Passacaglia and Fuge is possibly my favorite Bach work. (Fortunately I don't have to pick). This is not my favorite performance. I'm not completely sure that the ITO is always best for him. He tends to overuse (or overscale) some of his favorite big pedal reeds to the detriment of the clarity of the other parts. This also is my own opinion, not objective truth. Far be it from me to even try to understand the machine he's created or how Sony records it. It sounded great I thought in Methuen last time out. Not so great this time. I miss Telarc. Still...his playing AND registrations (again, my opinion) are wonderful in the Trio Sonatas and the French Suite and fairly conventional I think. (Don't hit me please Cameron) the B minor Prelude and Fuge not so much. His previous recording for Telarc on the fabulous Skinner at St. Mary the Virgin in NYC was completely unbeatable. (in my opinion)There! I didn't feel it if he swatted me. Thank you Mr. Carpenter! I really do feel he's the first new thing in classical music in my sixty years. (You too Wendy Carlos) I love him for that alone. Swimming upstream as long as he has to accomplish all that he has...quite impressive. Such a work ethic!Somewhat embarrassing that he's so much more popular in Europe than here.

Organ purists may quibble with some of Cameron Carpenter's interpretations of the classic organ repertoire, but he brings a freshness and excitement to the music reminiscent of Virgil Fox, who also introduced a new audience to the "King of Instruments." Performed on his custom built International Touring Organ, these works showcase Carpenter's dazzling technique and inventive imagining of many well known pieces.

This consummate and indefatigable musician presents the great gift of hearing Bach in a new way, particularly pleasing for those selections that seemed sealed in familiarity until this moment.

Exceedingly good!

very good

Unique and fun to listen to.

I cannot listen enough to this--it is EXCELLENT. All you really need is Cameron Carpenter.