Goldberg Variations: Aria and 70 Variations Adapted, Arranged and Composed by Uri Caine

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Oeuvres de Johann Sebastian Bach adaptées par Uri Caine – Ensemble Uri Caine

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Amid the plethora of Bach discs released in 2000 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the composer’s death comes something truly original, groundbreaking even, from New York jazz performer and arranger Uri Caine and his band. Having already explored the music of such composers as Mahler, Wagner, and Schumann, Caine has turned his attention to Bach and the seminal Goldberg Variations. He is, of course, not the first musician to link the improvisatory skills of Baroque musicians with those of jazz players, but the 70-plus tracks on this two-CD release go way beyond mere extemporization. Caine takes Bach’s music back in time (with the help of a gamba quartet and lute), into the future (string quartet, tango, minimalism, klezmer, jazz), and to the dawn of the 21st century (ambient dance with DJs Olive and Logic). The keyboard remains central–Caine starts off on fortepiano and goes on to play piano, harpsichord, electronic keyboards, and Hammond organ–as do Baroque forms, such as variation, cannon, quodlibet, and chorale. Caine even finds time to pay homage to a number of other composers; namely, Rachmaninov, Vivaldi, Verdi, Mozart, and Handel. From the serene opening to some of the out-there variations along the way, there is never a dull moment on this beautifully presented release, which will fascinate and entertain many throughout repeated listenings. –Rebecca Agnew