I've written about Bach's Goldberg Variations in the past. And I've loved them for years. Yet despite these two facts -- and despite how much I enjoyed "The 'Goldbergs,' Remixed" from Deceptive Cadence's Goldberg Week series back in 2013 -- I never paid much attention to Dmitry Sitkovetsky's trio arrangement. And that was a mistake, because it's really wonderful.
Provided to YouTube by NAXOS of America Goldberg Variations, BWV 988 (arr. D. Sitkovetsky for string trio) : Aria 1 · Swiss Chamber Soloists Bach, J.S.: Goldberg-Variationen (version for string trio by Dmitry Sitkovetsky) ℗ 2013 NEOS Music Released on: 2013-08-01 Ensemble: Swiss Chamber Soloists Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach Composer: Dmitry Sitkovetsky Auto-generated by YouTube.
Speaking of translating Bach's masterful keyboard work into something for strings, here's Marcel Bitsch's even bigger grander, more-members-of-the-orchestra-ed arrangement.
Provided to YouTube by Believe SAS Goldberg-Variationen, BWV 988: Aria · Octuor de France Bach: Variations Goldberg ℗ Arpège Released on: 2015-01-28 Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach Music Publisher: D.R Auto-generated by YouTube.
It's not so much that they change the melodic excellence of the piece as much as they help to emphasize and bring out shades that I have not noticed in the past. Which is exactly why I love Glenn Gould's performances, 1955 and 1981 alike. ("The 55" is a work of reckless and wonderful abandon; "The 81," a more mature performance. Great, both.)
