Which Bach recordings, pls? (I did search)

Hello, group.

I am a newbie but I did my homework. I need your recommendations on Bach recordings, please. I am leaning towards HIP, but I want to buy both HIP and non-HIP recordings of major works for comparison. My taste, I prefer Requiem/Mozart by Savall than Gardiner. And I prefer female voice than counter-tenor. Please recommend recordings that have good sound quality and available in stores (US) or on Internet. From the posts on the ng it is rarely indicated whether the recording is good or not. I recently purchased Tosca/Callas but I had to take it back to Borders because of bad sound quality.

I did search on this ng and this is what I found. Please comment which recording would you recommend for newbie, with good sound quality.

1. Branderburg Concerto. HIP: Pinnock, I bought it and I think I like it. non-HIP: Leppard/Philips

I'm a Pinnock fan, so I recommend his Goldbergs. I also like the early Gould. As for the Tosca, I think it's return was premature. As you are a newbie, I can understand your thoughts on it. Certainly not state-of-the-art in sound. But much improved over the early Angel (EMI). I rather think if you continue to have an interest in opera, you'll come to understand what that recording is all about. And learn somewhat about Maria Callas. It took me nearly 30 years to begin to appreciate her 'sound' and art.

If you want something more risky and daring than Pinnock's, try the oft-mentioned Musica Antiqua Köln's (most recently available on a DG Panorama twofer). Don't know about Leppard's.

For period instruments, Gardiner. Herreweghe's has some nice moments, but is a little too mellow for my taste.

You did not mention the most recent period-instrument SMP: Harnoncourt's (came out in 2001, I think). I think this is his third or fourth recording of this work. Absolutely superb all around.

You might want to consider Anthony Newman's dirt cheap harpsichord Goldbergs on Sony Infinity Digital

The older Pinnock is fine Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin on harmonia mundi ... and there is always Savall

HIP: Hengelbrock or Gardiner (or both) non-HIP possibly the latest Rilling on hänssler

HIP Gardiner ? non-HIP Klemperer

HIP Hantai non-HIP Koroliov (hänssler), Gould, or, for few $, why not Charles Rosen

Manze/Podger, in some places available cheap as a promotion

Savall, or the one on hänssler

Savall is very interesting and very strange

er... maybe Gardiner, but why don't you get two cheap recordings of the Christmas Oratorio instead

If you can find Eby/Proprius, it is the recording I would recommend. Spectacular sound, excellent female alto, fabulous choir, dramatic conducting. Probably my favorite recording.

For non-HIP, you might try Schepkin (which was recently available for next to nothing at Cyber Music Surplus.

Goebel/ MAK.

> non-HIP: Leppard/Philips

Then you probably do.... But you may want to try another, more electric, HIP performance such as Berlin AAM on Harmonia Mundi or MAK/DG/Archiv.

Absolutely - though if you want something further removed form HIP, you may want to look for, say, Klemperer or Boult.

Some of those involve countertenors, so you should probably avoid them. Eby's is superb in every way, probably the best recorded of any of them. I would recommend Herreweghe's only if you want something mellow, Thomas's only for his remarkable take on 'crucifixus'.

Between those two, Shaw. Klemperer's shown to better effect on the single disc released by Testament of his recording of the choruses with a vastly superior choir to that used on the complete recording. If you would like to try a very lively performance with a superb boys choir and modern instruments, try Beringer's, recently reissued dirt cheap by Haenssler.

Your dislike of countertenors rules out all of those. If you can overcome that dislike, I would suggest Herreweghe or Leonhardt (or Koopman). Or consider the most recent of Harnoncourt's recordings.

Schreier, though he's less different from HIP than Klemperer. Consider Goennenwein's too - more old fashioned than Schreier but, unlike Klemperer's, showing signs of life and boasting a superlative team of soloits. If HIP-influenced modern is of any interest, try Rilling/Haenssler.

For harpsichord, Robert Hill on M&A - more expressive than any other harpsichord recording of the music I've heard. There are several recommendable piano Goldbergs, but at the top of the heap of well-recorded performances I would put Schepkin and Dershavina, the latter dirt cheap (if you can find it).

Friedrich Gulda on Philips or Edwin Fischer on Naxos.

Arrggh! Not the Gulda - worth a single listen because it's eccentric, but not a keeper. Try to get the Feinberg - a spiritual experience. Fischer/Naxos I completely agree with. Nikolayeva if you see it about.

I'd add the Gould box for the sake of the Partitas and Inventions - you get the 48 as well. Probably not much more than the Gulda.

For HIP, keeping labels Harmonia Mundi and Teldec in mind, you can't go far wrong, ie Herreweghe, Harnoncourt, Leonhardt. Koopman on Erato's another.

Klemperer, Scherchen, Gould, for non-HIP. I like Karajan (DG) in St. Matthew Passion, but must admit that that's not commonly-held wisdom.

Gulda's is certainly weird - about half of them strike me as awful (lots of mechanical banging in some of them) others wonderfully inventive. If one wants Fischer, though, there are better transfers than the Naxos.

Oops! Harnoncourt II is HIP, not non-HIP ;-( In that case: either he or Herreweghe for HIP, and Richter (because of the vocalists) or Scherchen (because of the drama) for non-HIP.

-jt