With this recording Murray Perahia concludes his traversal of J.S. Bach's English Suites -- together with the earlier recording of Nos. 1, 3 and 6 (SK 60276), this CD represents a major statement on these important works by an artist whose energies had previously been devoted to Classical and Romantic repertoire.
Perahia's embrace of the Baroque has delighted critics and fans as much as it has surprised them. His performances of the works of Bach, Handel, and Scarlatti display all the elegance and delicacy for which he is famous, plus a clarity of focus and interpretive depth that only this repertoire can reveal.
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Nominated for a 2000 Grammy Award as Best Instrumental Soloist (without Orchestra)
Bach: English Suites Nos.1, 3 and 6 (SK 60276) has won the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (without Orchestra) and Classic CD Magazine's "Best Instrumental Disc of 1998"
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"Murray Perahia -- now as before the finest American pianist on the scene."
Baltimore Sun
"...this is no ordinary pianist; he's one who stands with the best of the best."
Seattle Times
"Pianist Perahia played Bach's music for years; only recently has he begun to record it. One wonders why. It always was and still is some of the most lustrous, insightful Bach to be heard on piano, and this disc of the composer's most playful piano suites is typical. Though Perahia can find emotional impact in the simplest chord statement and knows how to make a melody sing, his playing is crisp and disciplined. There's also a sense of counterpoint that's rare among those who don't specialize in this music: though the music unfolds with the rigorous logic that is Bach's hallmark, Perahia is always delivering surprises, usually in the form of some usually buried strand of melody that puts a new perspective on the whole passage. Playing like this can make you forget Glenn Gould."
USA Today (4 Stars)
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