Germany's Piano Spring - Paul Gulda

On Saturday, Paul Gulda invites you to an extraordinary concert evening at the Music and Art School of Deutschlandsberg. Under the title "Well-Tempered on Five Clavichords," he dedicates himself to Johann Sebastian Bach's monumental cycle The Well-Tempered Clavier – bringing the works to life on five different keyboard instruments: harpsichord, clavichord, grand piano, positive organ, and electric piano. Bach wrote the first part of The Well-Tempered Clavier in 1722 in Weimar – at a time when the world of keyboard instruments was undergoing rapid development. Organs had existed since antiquity, clavichords and harpsichords experienced a golden age in courtly and private musical life, and new tuning techniques allowed for the first time a pure tone to be played in all 24 major and minor keys. With his work, Bach reached a musical pinnacle: a teaching and practice book, a compendium of contrapuntal art, and at the same time a magical garden full of fantasy, spirit, and feeling. Paul Gulda takes this historical approach seriously – and simultaneously develops it in a contemporary manner. Since the term "clavier" in the 18th century did not refer to a single instrument but rather to an entire family of instruments, Gulda distributes the individual preludes and fugues across those sound bodies that best correspond to their musical form. Thus, Bach's masterpiece unfolds on harpsichord, clavichord, and positive organ in authentic splendor – while the modern sounds of the grand piano and electric piano open the space for new facets. In the spirit of the experimental and forward-looking Bach. Program:
Johann Sebastian Bach – The Well-Tempered Clavier, Part One
12 Preludes and Fugues BWV 846–857
12 Preludes and Fugues BWV 858–869 An evening that connects historical depths and modern sound colors – making Bach's music experienceable in its overwhelming diversity.