The Art of Fugue is Bach’s final composition and one of his most challenging. In this album Phantasm and its director Laurence Dreyfus along with organist Daniel Hyde showcase all the hidden beauties of the composer’s magnum opus, arguably the pinnacle of the fugue genre.
Printed in open score, the format allows a rendition on viols, as recorded here. Brimming with rich counterpoint and dynamic conversation among the parts, the work can legitimately claim a place within the consort repertoire. Bach manages to paint a finely delineated set of contrasting musical portraits full of revelations and surprises.
Far from an academic encyclopedia of arcane musical techniques, The Art of Fugue thus embarks on a (unfinished) voyage of discovery shared by an inveterate explorer whose thirst for invention knows no bounds. Organist Daniel Hyde performs four movements in this welcome follow-up to Phantasm’s acclaimed Well-Tempered Consort series.
Phantasm
Laurence Dreyfus (Viola Da Gamba & Director)
Emilia Benjamin (Viola Da Gamba)
Jonathan Manson (Viola Da Gamba)
Markku Luolajan-Mikkola (Viol)
Daniel Hyde, Organ
Tracklist
Please note that the below previews are loaded as 44.1 kHz / 16 bit.Total time: 01:19:38
Additional information
| Label | |
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| SKU | CKD759 |
| Qualities | DSD 512 fs, DSD 256 fs, DSD 128 fs, DSD 64 fs, DXD 24 Bit, WAV 192 kHz, FLAC 96 kHz |
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| Recording Engineer | Philip Hobbs |
| Release Date | March 28, 2025 |
Press reviews
BBC Radio 3
Fugal Bach from that most elegant and beautifully balanced viol consort Phantasm and the plangent sound of the viols has a softness and delicate melancholy that brings a meditative quality to Bach’s The Art of Fugue. Classy playing and recording as we’ve come to expect.
Gramaphone
Phantasm’s playing exhibits an intensity of feeling that is palpable no matter the complexity of the texture […] In short, a perfect balance of head and heart.
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