Reviewed by Steven Whitehead

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) should need little introduction but in his day he was probably best known as an organist. For obvious reasons we have no recordings of the great man so have to trust that his later interpreters get him right. On this budget re-issue, first released on the Teldec label in 1985, we hear Austrian organist, harpsichordist and composer Herbert Tachezi (1930-2016) playing the Silbermann organ of the Catholic Hofkirche in Dresden which was completed not long after Bach's death and so while he would not have played it himself it is an example of the type of instrument available to him. While this may be of interest to organ buffs most of us just want to know about the music. The title piece, the mighty "Toccata and Fugue" (BWV 565), is quite possibly the most famous composition for the instrument ever and Tachezi certainly does it full justice. So that is eight minutes well spent. What about the remaining 55? While not quite an anti-climax after the "T&F" the rest of the programme cannot reach the same heights but is still well worth hearing. We get two versions of a "Preludium and Fugue", one in E flat major (BWV 552) and t'other in G minor (BWV 542) followed by "Passacaglia in C minor" (BWV 582) and a closing "Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C major" (BWV 564). Every piece is superb and the title track belongs in any collection of classical music - and there's the rub: if you have any sort of collection you may well have this in it so I suggest you check to see what you have and then consider adding this collection to your own. As an introduction to Bach's organ music this is excellent value so a certain amount of duplication should not put you off. There are, of course, many other Bach compilations on the market so that it becomes quite intimidating trying to decide which are worth having. To my ears, the Tachezi collection is well played and good value and so can safely be recommended and while the booklet notes are somewhat trenchant this is a minor quibble.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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