J.S. Bach: The Art of the Fugue (Kunst der Fuge), BWV 1080

by Kimiko Ishizaka

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stormranger67 A very sharp, clear and powerful performance of The Art of Fugue! This recording is a found treasure! Favorite track: Contrapunctus 1.

Sven B. Schreiber (sbs) This album comprises a brilliant rendering of one of the most important works in the history of polyphonic music, but the main reason I've bought it is the last fugue. There's evidence that Bach actually completed it, but died while writing the final copy. Everything after bar #239 is lost. Contrary to some others, Kimiko Ishizaka's own 2:30 minutes completing the work in a most seamless way don't add the composition cycle's main theme, but process the three themes introduced before only. Favorite track: Fuga a3 Soggetti (completion by Pianist).

podarces_fan I rediscovered Bach's Art of the Fugue with this wonderful interpretation. Really.

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1.	Contrapunctus 1 03:05	buy track
2.	Contrapunctus 2 02:35	buy track
3.	Contrapunctus 3 02:36	buy track
4.	Contrapunctus 4 04:43	buy track
5.	Contrapunctus 5 03:24	buy track
6.	Contrapunctus 6 a 4 in Stylo Francese 05:47	buy track
7.	Contrapunctus 7 a 4 Per Augmentationem 04:18	buy track
8.	Contrapunctus 8 a 3 04:06	buy track
9.	Contrapunctus 9 a 4 Alla Duodecima 02:35	buy track
10.	Contrapunctus 10 a 4 Alla Decima 03:52	buy track
11.	Contrapunctus 11 a 4 04:52	buy track
12.	Contrapunctus Inversus 12 A4 - Forma Inversa 03:11	buy track
13.	Contrapunctus Inversus A4 - Forma Recta 03:02	buy track
14.	Contrapunctus Inversus A3 - Forma Inversa 02:11	buy track
15.	Contrapunctus Inversus A3 02:15	buy track
16.	Canon Per Augmentationem in Contrario Motu 05:20	buy track
17.	Canon Alla Ottava 02:18	buy track
18.	Canon Alla Decima in Contrapunto Alla Terza 04:46	buy track
19.	Canon Alla Duodecima in Contrapunto Alla Quinta 03:45	buy track
20.	Fuga a3 Soggetti (completion by Pianist) 09:04	buy track

about

The pianist who undertakes performing Bach’s final masterpiece, the Art of the Fugue, not only braves one of the most challenging and intense keyboard works of all time, but also confronts the ultimate tragedy of music history; that Bach died before finishing his most ambitious work.

This recording features a newly composed completion to the final fugue, written and performed by Kimiko Ishizaka. Bach was in the process of writing a triple fugue (three themes), with the main theme being the Germanic musical spelling of his own name (B-flat, A, C, B-natural, written B-A-C-H in German nomenclature), at the time of his death. Kimiko Ishizaka brings the triple fugue to completion using the three themes already present, and drawing on ideas, patterns, and styles found elsewhere within the piece.

The piano used for the recording is the Bösendorfer Vienna Concert 280, a completely new design from Bösendorfer which has won praise for its tone, dynamic range, and clarity. The recording was made in May, 2017, in the Teldex Studio, Berlin.

The recording engineer for the recording is Anne-Marie Sylvestre. Anne-Marie and Kimiko previously worked together to record Bach's Goldberg Variations and The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1.

License: Creative Commons Zero (despite what Bandcamp tells you) creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
Program notes by Paul Griffith - copyright 2017, all rights reserved.

credits

released October 4, 2017

Kimiko Ishizaka, piano
Anne-Marie Sylvestre, audio engineer, editing, mastering
Robert Douglass, producer, photography
Gerd Finkenstein, piano technician
Album Cover by NASK 041
Teldex Studio
Bösendorfer Vienna Concert 280

license

Some rights reserved. Please refer to individual track pages for license info.

about

Kimiko Ishizaka Köln, Germany

An award winning pianist, composer, and athlete, Kimiko Ishizaka brings a love and devotion to the music of J.S. Bach which will thrill purists and aficionados, and make instant fans out of first-time listeners. Her contributions to the public domain are her legacy. ... more

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