Goldberg Variations and Other Bach Transcriptions - Piano

This volume collects four of the most important keyboard masterpieces by Johann Sebastian Bach - the "Goldberg" Variations, Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue, Fantasia Contrappuntistica, and Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in D Minor - in arrangements by celebrated pianist and composer Ferruccio Busoni for his 1919 Breitkopf & Haertel edition. Additional features include Busoni's original system of keyboard notation, demonstrated vis-a-vis the Chromatic Fantasy. An important composer in his own right, Busoni ranks among history's most celebrated pianists. His controversial 25-volume edition of transcriptions of Bach's keyboard music includes side-by-side discussions of Bach's music with arrangements by Busoni and his pupil, Egon Petri. Adapted for the modern resources of the grand piano, the transcriptions include plentiful doublings of voices for higher and lower ranges of the keyboard that did not exist on Bach's clavier, in addition to analytical re-shapings of the music itself. This volume marks a significant collection of rarities that merit greater attention among performers and listeners.