In the fifteen years between his first recording for CBS Masterworks and INSPIRED BY BACH, Yo-Yo Ma expanded and refined his conception of the Bach suites for solo cello. The performances are introspective, almost as if not for an audience at all. Sony's close-miked recordings capture every sound.
These recordings are part of a larger project: six short films by various directors, inspired by Bach's suites (and Ma's performances of them). These range from choreographic realizations of the music by skaters Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean to Julie Moir Messervy's garden inspired by the first suite.
The suites are some of the basic works of the cello repertoire, combining technical challenges with musical satisfaction for both performer and listener. Ma is hardly the first cellist to return to Bach's cello suites for a second recording--Janos Starker has taken them into the studio five times--and INSPIRED BY BACH is an example of the reasons for these returns. As Ma demonstrates here, the rewards of living with them over long periods of time are great.
REVIEWS:
Fanfare (7-8/98, pp.79-81) - "...Expression. That's what's new about these interpretations, and what was largely missing from Ma's first set. Only rarely does Yo-Yo Ma play with such freedom and abandon, with technical mastery but also in an aggressively homely way if it fits the mood..."
BBC Music (5/98, p.62) - Performance: 5 (out of 5), Sound: 3 (out of 5) - "...Suite No. 3 is outstanding. Ma's well-nigh impeccable technique allows his bow to dance through the most taxing movements - the Gavottes of Suite No. 6, originally for a five-string cello, are a triumph as he touches fistfuls of chords with exquisite delicacy..."
