Bach Bartók

Julien Libeer pairs two very different composers, and in doing so finds links and common interests. Both Bach and Bartók were virtuoso players with a fascination for the keyboard’s potential. Taking two suites each by the composers, Libeer plays with terrific flair—his Bach precise yet full of poetry, his Bartók stunningly angular and engaging. Jumping between these two geniuses is immensely refreshing and, when played with this kind of imagination, is an enriching experience. To move from Bach’s Partita in C Minor to Bartók’s Suite for Piano, Op. 14 is to undertake musical time travel that can’t fail to thrill.