J. S. BACH. ’S GOLDBERG VARIATIONS
transcription for guitar duet
Like many others during his time, Bach very often practiced adaptation and transcription of sheet music by his contemporaries as well as his own works. Although sensitive to the texture of voices and instruments, he didn’t hesitate to have his own work undergo a metamorphosis proper to breathe new life into them. It is true that the density and the rigor of his contrapuntal writing lend themselves to other interpretations, into renewed colors which are able to reveal, up to that point, neglected facets. Like The Art of fugue, the Goldberg Variations have also led to many transcriptions. However, from the picked strings of the harpsichord to the guitar, the distance is minor compared to the one between the piano and the organ, or even among an instrumental ensemble. In a unity of colors, the lines acquire an autonomy of nuances here that the harpsichord keys alone couldn’t express. Inexhaustible treasures of masterpieces…