CPE Bach: Sonatas and Rondos
Marc-André Hamelin (piano) (Hyperion)
(scroll down for English review)
以超炫技曲目著稱的哈梅林，雖然尚未錄過巴哈專輯，但這次錄CPE巴哈卻不令人意外，因為他之前錄過很多張海頓，包括奏鳴曲及協奏曲，同是古典派或早期古典派，CPE巴哈實是合理延伸。
首先談哈梅林的演奏，單看這點絕對是無懈可擊，我覺得是給其他鋼琴家，如何彈奏早期古典派、以及巴洛克鍵盤音樂的最佳示範。這種音樂的確不像由Clementi開始奠定的鋼琴音樂風格般，有很多和聲及音型給演奏者作掩護，而是像無遮無掩，要每個音都很小心彈。其實哈梅林就是本着古鍵琴家對音符的認真，彈出現代鋼琴才做得出的明亮而柔和的音色，我看他已隨時可以錄巴哈，更可能是「鋼琴巴哈」的頂尖水平，多數勝過同品牌的休伊特。
然後到作品，這套140分鐘的雙碟，只是CPE巴哈獨奏鍵盤作品的不足一成，不過還是沒有幾多難忘音樂，儘管是悅耳、舒暢，毫不沉悶。雖說CPE簡化了父親的風格，不過我覺得他筆下的古典派簡潔，還是取代不到他老土父親的深邃。然而CPE的音樂，即使註定被忽略，但也不會失禮，我覺得重點並不是他從父親學到穩妥的技術，而是他學到或吸收到父親的品味，行貨極都有個限度。
Hyperion還是不設串流，不過我買了數碼下載，都是值得，只是假如要我花六十小時去發掘CPE巴哈的鋼琴獨奏及協奏曲，我倒不如用那些時間再聽熟他老爸的音樂好了。
Some years after his Haydn series, Marc-André Hamelin strikes again in early classical repertoire wit CPE Bach, though he has yet to record a Bach album.
Let’s go over Hamelin’s playing first. I’d say he made the best example for pianists how to play not just early classical, but also baroque repertoire on the piano. Although CPE obviously wrote most of this music for the fortepiano but the harpsichord wasn’t yet obsolete, and the music could readily be played on the earlier instrument with only slight loss of effect. As the piano idiom was yet to be set by Clementi and contemporaries, the notes written by CPE Bach were almost as bare as baroque music and players couldn’t fumble their way through chords and figurations. Here, Hamelin played each note with the diligence of a harpsichordist yet produce the robust sound only a modern piano could render. Hamelin was more than ready to tackle JS, and if does, I could imagine an exceptional recording even better than his fellow pianist at Hyperion, Angela Hewitt.
For the works themselves, this 140-minute double-CD is less than a tenth of CPE’s output for solo piano (his output of piano concertos is equally staggering) but I couldn’t find anything so memorable that it could upstage JS. This music is elegant, soothing and I wasn’t bored but CPE’s classical simplicity simply couldn’t deliver the profoundness of his old-fashioned father. I don’t think CPE’s piano music could be resuscitated beyond specialist’ interest but this music is definitely worth the name of Bach. It isn’t just that CPE received thorough education from his father in terms of technique, but I think it’s his proximity to JS’ music that he acquired his father’s exceptional taste. With that he wouldn’t dare produce music that was too run-of-the-mill.
No streaming from Hyperion as usual. Although the time and money was well spent but I’d definitely not devote 60 hours to CPE’s piano music, the time would be better spent on his father’s music.