Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Keyboard Concerto No. 1 in D minor, BWV 1052
Keyboard Concerto No. 2 in E major, BWV 1053
Keyboard Concerto No. 3 in D major, BWV 1054
Keyboard Concerto No. 5 in F minor, BWV 1056
Beatrice Rana (piano)
Amsterdam Sinfonietta
rec. 2022, Muziekcentrum van de Omroep, Hilversum, The Netherlands
Reviewed as lossless download
Warner Classics 2173243358 [62]

Reading the glowing reviews of this disc bymy colleagues David Barker and Ralph Moore, and seeing it be awarded a coveted Recording of the Month tag, how could one not want to add this disc to one’s collection? What more can I add to their obvious heartfelt enthusiasm for Beatrice Rana’s understanding of Bach and her style and class which ooze from this new record. Well, I have followed Rana’s progress on record and on the radio whenever I have been able to for ten years. I have all her CDs and plenty of tapings I have made from recitals and concerts she has given around the world. Unfortunately, I have never seen her perform live. I also have a decent collection of Bach concerti on my shelves so maybe I can at least try to give an alternative viewpoint. That being said, I am going to be coming to the same verdict as David and Ralph, so if you are pressed for time, I quite understand and you may be excused reading this.

First, I need to say that I believe that Bach would wholly approve of the modern-day concert grand piano being used in his works. These concerti almost certainly date from his time in Köthen in the early 1720s. After Bach had moved to Leipzig, he rehashed the music for sacred cantatas, then in the very late 1730s when he was director of the Collegium Musicum, he adapted them again for keyboard and strings, for performances at Café Zimmermann. Bach had a great sense of humour and a mischievous side, and he was never prudish. He was also a practical man and would have scored these concertos for iPhone apps if the price was right.

Beatrice Rana with the Amsterdam Sinfonietta, concertmaster Candida Thompson give us four concertos: 1,2,3 and 5 in the conventional numbering system. In my comparative listening, I returned to Angela Hewitt on Hyperion (2005) and the much more recent Gile Bae (2021/22) on the Arcana label. Both use a small orchestra (strings only, as written) and approach the music with complementary ambitions. If you are looking for harpsichord versions of these works I can recommend Francesco Corti on Pentatone.

The most famous (and best) of the concertos is the first in D minor. It is the most imposing and Rana gives a brisk, fresh and flawless rendition of it. The strings which line up in a 5/4/4/3/2 formation (I think) are led by Thompson on violin. Now, I know that in the concert tour that pre-dated the recording sessions, the concerts were directed from the violin by Thompson as is usual. In Heidelberg, for example, a couple of days before the first studio day at Hilversum they gave a full concert which as well as including Bach’s Concertos 1 and 3 showcased Bridge, CPE Bach and Walton’s Sonata for Strings. Candida Thompson is not credited by Warner as directing these performances and Rana talks about a democracy of endeavour in her insightful notes, but I just wanted to give a nod to Thompson, who has honed these players over years now, into the crack string ensemble you hear on these CDs.

The sound is wonderful. I was struck at how airy and light it is. There is very little bass emphasis but do not assume this means the sound is brittle or edgy in the treble range. It isn’t, sonics are just alive and bright. Violins play with little vibrato as you would expect but they buzz with energy and exuberance. The Concerto No. 1 has a timing of exactly twenty minutes, nearly three minutes faster than Hewitt in Australia, yet there is never a hint of pressing too hard. Beatrice Rana plays with joy and radiance. Her use of the pedal is judicious, but she does employ it (unlike Bae). I found her adagio soundly judged and moving, with no hint of the grinding ground variations being repetitive as one sometimes feels in some readings. The finale just labelled allegro is a passepied en rondeau. This movement, feeling like perpetual motion sometimes, ending one of the first ever keyboard concertos, is a great example of the light-hearted finish that was taken up and copied by hundreds of composers in the next hundred years. I listened to the Murray Perahia version where he directs the ASMF and there is just no comparison. The laurels now go to Rana and her Amsterdam colleagues.

In the Concerto No. 2, the ensemble is tight again and Warner have engineered the sound nicely. Throughout the set Rana played with no lid on the piano. In Gile Bae’s set on Arcana she varies this decision with each piece. Sometimes lid off (in this concerto, like Rana), sometimes on and between her and the strings (concerto 5). Bae’s concerti are all recorded in different impressive locales too, from a church to a concert hall, to the stage of an opera house. It is an interesting set and Bae is a fascinating player but the differing acoustics in each work are a bit too contrasted for me. Hewitt on Hyperion makes the interesting decision to use a continuo harpsichord with the strings. I don’t mind this at all and in no way does it interfere with the piano line(s). These are all things to be considered, when making your choice in a recording of these works.

After a splendid jaunt through No. 2, Rana and the Sinfonietta turn to No. 3 which we all will know well, as it based on the violin concerto in E, BWV1042. This again gets a sprightly performance with flourish aplenty. The slow movement is deep and tragic. The minor key and the harmonies Bach write put me in mind of Orpheus’ lamenting in Hades, a lifetime before Beethoven’s more famous example was even conceived of. That is quite different to the impression I get from the violin version of this adagio in the higher key of C sharp minor. The short dancing finale is everything you could wish for.

The final miniature concerto in F minor is only just a fraction over nine minutes long. In the notes Rana explains how the largo touches her perhaps the most of any of the movements on this record. It did that to David too in his review and I confess no immunity to it, either. She is such a great player of Bach and her advocacy of his music is noble and sincere. This project was clearly not about selling records but something on a far higher plane. 

Rana plays a Steinway D model. Hewitt chooses a warm and bright Fazioli with a nice bass to it. Bae plays a Bösendorfer (I assume she used the same one in all her recordings in those different venues). Bae reminds me of Glenn Gould. The CD from Arcana comes with a DVD of the performances too and she even sits really close to the keyboard like Gould often did (although not as low down). If you can afford all three, you are a fortunate soul. They really complement one another. If you need to choose, I am sure you can guess who we at MusicWeb International are going to endorse. Happy listening.

Philip Harrison Previous reviews: David Barker (March 2025 Recording of the Month) ~ Ralph Moore (April 2025)

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