Daniel Lozakovich: my Bach top five
"The first Bach I ever heard was the A minor violin concerto," recalls violinist Daniel Lozakovich, whose debut album for Deutsche Grammophon featured solo and concerto works by the composer. "I heard it live at my school. It was the first time I ever saw a violin, the first time I ever heard the violin and I fell in love straight away. I was in tears and I knew the violin was going to be my instrument, even though my mother wanted me to be a tennis player!" Here the young player presents an exclusive playlist of his favourite Bach recordings.
Read more…Goldberg Variations, Glenn Gould (1955 recording)
I first heard the Glenn Gould recording of the "Goldberg" Variations a year or two later, and have loved it ever since. His "Goldberg" Variations – especially the early recording made when he was young – is so fresh and so alive. There’s this real sense of breathing in his playing.
Cello Suite No. 2, Pablo Casals
I didn’t first hear the Casals recording of the Cello Suites until later. My teacher told me to listen to it before I started playing the Sonatas and Partitas. I was so amazed. Casals is a master at getting inside the cello and really bringing Bach into this world. It speaks to all ages – Baroque and now. I love how he connects the timing and the sound, and the intonation. People criticise Casals for it, but he was a freak about intonation and even wrote a book about it. He actually uses just intonation – where the sharps are higher and the flats are lower.
French Suite No. 2, Murray Perahia
I admire pianists a lot, because they work with such a percussive instrument and they can make it sing – and it’s so hard to shine in the piano world in particular. But I love Murray Perahia and his recording of the French Suites. It’s so fresh and new, and it goes its own way. So many today try too hard to create their own "interpretation", to add much of their own character so it becomes a bit more like a caricature. But Murray Perahia has his own style, his own voice, but also manages to sounds beautiful and thoughtful.
Harpsichord Concerto No.1, Trevor Pinnock
It's very different again, but I really love the crystal clearness of Trevor Pinnock’s harpsichord sound, and the sound of his orchestra is amazing, too. I really admire him and his Bach especially – and this recording of the D minor Harpsichord Concerto in particular.
Chaconne from Partita for solo violin No. 2
For a piece like the Chaconne, I need to have analyzed it in my own way, but I also love the analysis by Helga Thoene, who suggested the Chaconne was an epitaph for his wife, who died shortly before. I loved listening to recordings – like Szeryng – as a kid, but I haven’t listened to any Bach recordings on the violin for a few years now. I have my sound and I’m working on it. And that’s what’s great with such an instrument as my Strad: I can always find something new.