Bach: The Goldberg Variations

This is the benchmark, the Gold Standard, the one by which all others are judged, and for good reason. If you are even a little bit interested in this type of music (and even if you're not), you need to have the Glenn Gould reading of the Goldberg Variations in your collection. This is the music of the spheres - our brains are physically incapable of resisting its charms - and Glenn Gould taps into that perfect blend of mathematical precision and high art like no other. I dare you to listen to this with an open mind, really listen to it, and not break into a smile.Enjoy!!

Best music.

The music is extremely pleasant and not overly distracting. It has proven great to drown out workplace distractions and let me focus on reading material and working on projects.

All these glowing reviews absolutely blow my mind. I have been listening to classical music for over 50 years and during that time I have consistently endeavored to improve the fidelity of the devices I use to play my music - receivers, speakers, headphones, etc. This has rewarded me with progressively richer and more rewarding listening experiences, until now! Hearing Glenn Gould's guttural utterances is aesthetically excruciating. It is also a slap in the face; what tremendous audacity to not only maniacally sing-along but also to insist that this insanity be included in the recording.I bought Murray Perahia "Bach: Goldberg Variations, BWV 988" within hours of buying Glenn Gould's recording, to get the bad taste out of my mouth, and like it a great deal. How does it compare to the Gould recording? I have no idea, I only made it half-way through Gould and don't plan to ever listen to it again.

...I forgot this is the one where the idiot actually hums aloud while he's playing.Ten dollars down the drain.Oh well...

The 1955 recording was a virtuoso performance by a novice; on this version made just before his death you will find the fuller vision of a mature artist. There is so much emotion poured into this highly formal music, it's like watching a great actor who really knows how to underplay a scene, with the slightest twinge of a facial muscle indicating powerful depths. I could listen to this all day.