In February 1987, Keith Jarrett recorded, on a Steinway grand piano, the first book of The Well-Tempered Clavier by Johann Sebastian Bach. It was the first in a series of acclaimed Bach recordings he would make for ECM. On March 7, 1987, prior to the release of the studio set, Jarrett performed the complete Book I for an audience at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall in New York state. An archival live recording of this concert is being presented for the first time. When the studio album was released, Jarrett’s manner in these iconic preludes and fugues surprised many listeners with its poetic restraint. By not imposing his personality unduly on the music, Jarrett allowed every note of the score to come through via the natural lyricism of the contrapuntal melodic lines and the dance-like pulse of the rhythmic flow. These qualities are strikingly apparent in the live recording.
Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I – Keith Jarrett
