PERFORMER: VLADIMIR FELTSMAN
ALBUM: J.S. BACH: GOLDBERG VARIATIONS
LABEL: MUSICMASTERS CLASSICS
THE BOTTOM LINE: The Russian-born virtuoso bares his German soul in a dazzling, radical interpretation.
THERE IS A DEEPLY MYSTICAL SIDE to Vladimir Feltsman. It has to do with suffering and spiritual reunification -- what Tolstoy called "resurrection." But the Russian-born pianist refuses to talk about all this. He lets his music do the talking in the unfolding of these remarkable Goldberg Variations, from the first tender, probing notes of the aria, through successive layers of joy, exuberance, introspection and turbulence, and finally back to the whispered serenity of the...
