Glenn Gould – Johann Sebastian Bach, Prelude & Fugue No. 22 in B-Flat Minor, BWV 891 – WTC II – (HD)

A lot of pianists play this prelude dead slow, thereby misinterpreting it. Glenn Gould, to my mind, takes it at the right speed as it is an 'alla breve' – 2 in a bar! It demands to go fast. So why make it into something slow, contemplative and decidedly 4 in a bar? Gould's fugue here is staggering. I play it at a uniform speed with the prelude, but he has an amazing speed and attack, and therefore technical virtuosity, and so clear of pedalling, and of course with him it works. Genius!