While it wouldn't be fair to say that with volume 16 of his survey of complete solo keyboard music of C.P.E. Bach clavichordist
Miklós Spányi has finally gotten to the good stuff -- that would be to vastly underestimate the value of the previous 15 volumes -- it would also not be too terribly far from the truth. Because while there was plenty of good and great music in the earlier volumes -- who can forget the depths of the Prussian Sonatas? -- there was more than enough fair and forgettable music there, too -- who can remember all the lightweight sonatinas? Not so with volume 16 featuring the first three of Bach's six Würtemberg Sonatas -- three-movement wonders, every one. Written in 1745 and aimed directly at the most sophisticated of contemporary musical tastes, the Würtemberg Sonatas are substantial works -- they all last 20 or more minutes -- and, more importantly, highly expressive works -- their frequent tempo changes and textural shifts along with their wonderfully sensitive melodies make for challenging listening. As always,
Spányi is a superb advocate of Bach's subtle and elusive music playing on supple and responsive clavichord, and he makes a strong case for these works. As always in this series, the sound is just a wee bit dim and muffled.