Jacques Loussier Trio - Bach's Goldberg Variations

2000 CD release.

Jacques Loussier's fascination with Bach dates to his student days at the Paris Conservatoire, and the master's music has been a constant source of inspiration for his private study and his explorations with the Jacques Loussier Trio. Despite his forays into Vivaldi, Satie, and Ravel, which presented new challenges to the Trio and broadened its audience, Loussier always intended to return to Bach, particularly to adapt the Goldberg Variations for the group's signature treatment. The aria's length of 32 measures struck Loussier as a significant point of departure, since most jazz standards conform to that duration, and the implications of the song structure easily led to jazz formulations. Also of importance, the difficulties Loussier encountered in the more complex variations were resolved when the bass lines were given to Benoit Dunoyer de Segonzac, an elegant solution rich with possibilities.

Always tasteful and often clever, these light miniatures follow the Goldberg Variations fairly closely and venture into improvisation only at appropriate moments when each variation's character is established and Bach's own elaborations signal the time to jump off. While these arrangements will strike purists as gilding the lily, Loussier's respectful handling of the material may invite others to seek out the original for comparison and deeper appreciation.

AllMusicGuide