In June of 1955, a 25 year old piano sensation from Toronto, Ontario would go into the famed Columbia 30th Street Studio in New York (sometimes known as "The Church") to make his debut recording. Glenn Gould had chosen for occasion the monumental (and then not-often-performed) "Aria with Diverse Variations" by his beloved J.S. Bach, the Goldberg Variations. What was then deemed somewhat "academic" and the domain of just a handful of performers (and often heard, if at all, on the intended harpsichord)—and a strange choice all around for a debut recording—would, in Gould's hands it become something else altogether. The result was pure magic and would become a sensation in the music world, launching the young pianist to international acclaim and to true classical music "rock star" status. The precision, energy and perfect balance of intellectual rigor and passion embodied by Gould's remarkable interpretation would change the way we heard the music of Bach (with whose music the name Gould would become synonymous), and change the course of classical music in general. Indeed, so indelibly did the pianist put his unique stamp on Bach's keyboard masterwork that some, indeed, would refer to the recording as the Gouldberg variations. Released in January of 1956, it would become one of the best-selling classical recordings of all time and likely the best-known solo piano recording ever made.
In honor of the iconic recording's 70th anniversary, Foley Schuler will share some of his own reflections on this, one of his personal favorites, as we hear Gould's debut in its entirety—and much more, Friday afternoon.
