Bach and Musical Heresy

I am going to admit something that will undoubtedly unleash the wrath of my classical music fan readers.

I can't stand Mstislav Rostropovich's recordings of the Bach Cello Suites.

The first time I heard them I thought they were fine.

The second time I heard them, I found them irritating, full of 19th century bluff and bluster, demonstrating that Rostropovich had only a superficial understanding of Bach. I chalked it up to a partiuclarly foul mood and figured I should give him another chance.

Last week in Sacramento, KXPR played them. I listened carefully and realized that I was right. Rostropovich's approach is too bombastic, poorly ornamented, and is basically the cello equivalent to playing Bach on the piano with a minimum of ornament and an excess of post-Brahmsian angst. As a late 20th century interpretation of a 19th century conception of the baroque, fine, but I really can't see a need for that.

These pieces deserve a much lighter touch. The melodies should dance, with ample ornament to give sparkle and lustre to the whole thing. Has Rostropovich never been in a baroque church? The whole thing sounded like a Russian funeral dirge. Even his tempi seemed daft. I am beginning to think that Rostropovich has no ear for music, that he is simply a good technician who only has chops for bombast.

Bach deserves better than this. How these recordings became the new standard for these pieces is a sign of trouble in classical music audiences.