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Rating: The Goldberg Variations (BWV 988) by Johann Sebastian Bach undoubtedly represent one of the most beautiful pages in the history of music.
In the past, many performers have tackled this work by Bach, from Glenn Gould to Keith Jarrett, but never has anyone dared as much as Uri Caine. Indeed, accompanied by a large group of musicians from every musical genre, this cultured, eclectic, intelligent, and irreverent pianist from Philadelphia reinvents Bach's Variations with disillusionment, irony, and courage.
Uri Caine is no stranger to such experiments, having previously reinterpreted the music of Mahler (Primal Light in 1997), Wagner (Wagner e Venezia in 1997), Schumann (Love Fugue in 2000) and more recently Beethoven's Diabelli Variations (2003).
However, the approach with Bach represents perhaps his boldest and most original experiment.
Consistent with his jazz background, Uri Caine reinterprets and expands the Goldberg Variations, creating a fascinating musical journey. It all starts with the notes of a simple, yet wonderful, Aria, interpreted in a philological manner through a strong Sibermann piano, and then evolves into a kaleidoscope of sounds with 70 variations ranging from jazz, to blues, to tango, to gospel, to ragtime, to klezmer, to waltz, to mambo, all the way to the electronic tricks of DJ Logic.
There are, of course, also "classical" variations. In particular, Caine enjoys constructing pieces in the style of Vivaldi, Mozart, Verdi, and Rachmaninov.
An album characterized, therefore, by extremely different musical styles that, continuously merging and splitting, enthralls the listener for almost two and a half hours without a single moment of fatigue.
Anyone who lives music without prejudice cannot miss this album.
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