Bach: Organ Works / Helmut Walcha

Notes and Editorial Reviews

Helmut Walcha dominated the German organ school of the 1950s and '60s for his sober, unselfregarding Bach interpretations. He recorded more or less the complete Bach organ music for Deutsche Grammophon's burgeoning Archiv label in the mono-only days, and again in stereo. This is the stereo cycle, which also includes the blind organist's only recording of The Art of Fugue. Repackaged in a space-saving budget box of 12 CDs, the performances appear to have been remastered in comparison to earlier CD editions--brighter on top, and more defined in the bass. In fact, the sonic clarity of these 1956-71 recordings puts many digitally engineered Bach organ releases in the shade.

In Read more contrast to the imposing, multi-tiered Romantic instruments championed by many players in the first half of the 20th century, Walcha favored organs of Bach's time, or at least those restored as close as possible to original specifications. His manual dexterity allowed no blurred lines or smudged textures, while he commanded one of the supplest pedal techniques in the business. The trio sonatas, for instance, have rarely been matched for hand and foot equilibrium, yet are never virtuosic for their own sake. The mighty Preludes and Fugues, Passacaglia in C minor, C major Toccata, Adagio & Fugue BWV 564, plus the familiar D minor Toccata & Fugue BWV 565, achieve grandeur through line rather than mass, with steady, fluid rhythm. Walcha also "orchestrates" the chorale preludes in the image of a singer with a small, responsive chamber ensemble.

Younger organists like Peter Hurford might adopt livelier tempos at times, with a more liberal attitude toward ornamentation, yet this takes nothing away from Walcha's deep musicality and profound affinity for Bach's polyphonic idiom. DG's succinct, informative notes discuss the music, the performer, the instruments used, and the recordings themselves. In sum, Walcha's Bach holds a similar place in the annals of recording to Fischer-Dieskau's Schubert, Toscanini's Verdi, and Gieseking's Debussy.
--Jed Distler, ClassicsToday.com Read less

Works on This Recording

Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 538 "Dorian" by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 13 Minutes 12 Secs.

Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C major, BWV 564 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1956
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 15 Minutes 11 Secs.

Prelude and Fugue in A minor, BWV 543 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 11 Minutes 27 Secs.

Trio Sonata for Organ no 1 in E flat major, BWV 525 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1727; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1956
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 13 Minutes 14 Secs.

Trio Sonata for Organ no 6 in G major, BWV 530 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1727; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1956
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 13 Minutes 45 Secs.

Trio Sonata for Organ no 3 in D minor, BWV 527 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1727; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1969
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 14 Minutes 19 Secs.

Trio Sonata for Organ no 4 in E minor, BWV 528 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1727; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1969
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 10 Minutes 17 Secs.

Trio Sonata for Organ no 5 in C major, BWV 529 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1727; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1969
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 15 Minutes 15 Secs.

Prelude and Fugue in C major, BWV 531 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: Arnstadt, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 6 Minutes 49 Secs.

10.

Prelude and Fugue in E minor, BWV 533 "Little Prelude and Fugue" by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1707; Arnstadt, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 4 Minutes 21 Secs.

11.

Fugue on a theme by Legrenzi in C minor, BWV 574 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1707
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 7 Minutes 35 Secs.

12.

Fugue on a theme by Corelli in B minor, BWV 579 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1708; Arnstadt, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 5 Minutes 52 Secs.

13.

Prelude and Fugue in G minor, BWV 535 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 7 Minutes 38 Secs.

14.

Fugue in G minor, BWV 578 "Little G minor" by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1706; Arnstadt, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 4 Minutes 7 Secs.

15.

Pastorale in F major, BWV 590 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1710; Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 12 Minutes 17 Secs.

16.

Canzona in d, BWV 588 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1715; Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 6 Minutes 0 Secs.

17.

Allabreve in D major, BWV 589 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 4 Minutes 50 Secs.

18.

The Art of Fugue, BWV 1080: Contrapunctus 18 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1745-1750; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 10 Minutes 37 Secs.
Notes: This quadruple fugue, left unfinished due to Bach's death, was completed by Helmut Walcha.

19.

Duet for Organ in E minor, BWV 802 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1739
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 3 Minutes 11 Secs.

20.

Duet for Organ in F major, BWV 803 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1739
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 4 Minutes 0 Secs.

21.

Duet for Organ in G major, BWV 804 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1739
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 3 Minutes 7 Secs.

22.

Duet for Organ in A minor, BWV 805 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1739
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 3 Minutes 5 Secs.

23.

Orgelbüchlein, BWV 599-644 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1714-1717; Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1969
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 78 Minutes 26 Secs.

24.

Herr Jesu Christ, dich zu uns wend', BWV 709 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Written: 1708-20
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 2 Minutes 53 Secs.

25.

Herzlich tut mich verlangen, BWV 727 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 2 Minutes 18 Secs.

26.

Prelude and Fugue in E flat major, BWV 552 "St Anne": Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1739; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 9 Minutes 26 Secs.

27.

Klavierübung Volume 3, BWV 669-689 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1739; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 69 Minutes 55 Secs.

28.

Prelude and Fugue in E flat major, BWV 552 "St Anne": Fugue by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1739; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 7 Minutes 25 Secs.

29.

Meine Seele erhebt den Herren, BWV 733 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 4 Minutes 36 Secs.

30.

Nun freut euch, lieben Christen, BWV 734 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 2 Minutes 22 Secs.

31.

Vom Himmel hoch, da komm' ich her, BWV 700 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1708; Arnstadt, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 2 Minutes 23 Secs.

32.

Vom Himmel hoch, da komm' ich her, BWV 769 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1747; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1971
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 11 Minutes 6 Secs.

33.

An Wasserflüssen Babylon, BWV 653b by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1723; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 4 Minutes 51 Secs.

34.

Valet will ich dir geben, BWV 736 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 4 Minutes 9 Secs.

35.

Chorales (18) for Organ, BWV 651-668 "Leipzig" by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1971
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 88 Minutes 29 Secs.

36.

Chorale Preludes (6) BWV 645-650 "Schübler" by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Written: c1748-49
Date of Recording: 05/1971
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 17 Minutes 51 Secs.

37.

Partite sopra Sei gegrüsset, Jesu gütig, BWV 768 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1700; Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 20 Minutes 41 Secs.

38.

The Art of Fugue, BWV 1080 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1745-1750; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1956
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 86 Minutes 44 Secs.

39.

Fantasie and Fugue in C minor, BWV 562: Fantasie by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 4 Minutes 40 Secs.

40.

Fantasie in G major, BWV 572 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1706; Arnstadt, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 8 Minutes 52 Secs.

41.

Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1708; Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1956
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 9 Minutes 30 Secs.

42.

Toccata and Fugue in F major, BWV 540 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 15 Minutes 12 Secs.

43.

Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, BWV 542 "Great G minor" by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 12 Minutes 59 Secs.

44.

Prelude and Fugue in E minor, BWV 548 "Wedge" by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1727-1731; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 14 Minutes 39 Secs.

45.

Prelude and Fugue in B minor, BWV 544 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1727-1731; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 13 Minutes 47 Secs.

46.

Prelude and Fugue in F minor, BWV 534 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 9 Minutes 49 Secs.

47.

Prelude and Fugue in C minor, BWV 546 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 12 Minutes 46 Secs.
Notes: Composition written: ?Weimar, Germany (1708 - 1717).

48.

Trio Sonata for Organ no 2 in C minor, BWV 526 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1727; Leipzig, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1969
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 12 Minutes 15 Secs.

49.

Prelude and Fugue in C major, BWV 545 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 6 Minutes 2 Secs.

50.

Prelude and Fugue in D major, BWV 532 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 10 Minutes 40 Secs.

51.

Prelude and Fugue in G major, BWV 550 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1708
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 6 Minutes 49 Secs.

52.

Prelude and Fugue in D minor, BWV 539 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1720-1725
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 7 Minutes 58 Secs.

53.

Passacaglia in C minor, BWV 582 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: circa 1708-1712; Arnstadt, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 13 Minutes 43 Secs.

54.

Fantasie and Fugue in C minor, BWV 537 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708 - 1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 8 Minutes 59 Secs.
Notes: Composition written: ?Weimar, Germany (1708 - 1717).

55.

Prelude and Fugue in C major, BWV 547 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: after 1723; Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1956
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 10 Minutes 32 Secs.

56.

Prelude and Fugue in G major, BWV 541 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; Germany
Date of Recording: 09/1962
Venue: St. Lauren's Church, Alkmaar, Holland
Length: 8 Minutes 42 Secs.

57.

Prelude and Fugue in A major, BWV 536 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: 1708-1717; ?Weimar, Germany
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 6 Minutes 28 Secs.

58.

Prelude and Fugue in A minor, BWV 551 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performer: Helmut Walcha (Organ)
Period: Baroque
Written: by 1707
Date of Recording: 05/1970
Venue: St. Pierre-le-Jeune's Church, Strasbourg
Length: 5 Minutes 23 Secs.

Customer Reviews

Average Customer Review:

( 1 Customer Review )

Grumbly, Awesome Bach May 15, 2015 By JOHN M V. (Reston, VA) See All My Reviews "I never knew an organ could sound like this. No sappiness, no weepy tremolo that brings to mind electric organs in funeral parlors or bad church music. The instrument is more powerful, more angry sometimes, somehow, and more intense. The poignancy of the low notes is unmatched - not a "mere low note" but a brooding, sometimes almost menacing, deepness. Like an old man, wandering in his home, ruminating about his life and over feelings from the past, unconcerned about others' perception. And, this is Bach as played by a master. The style is idiosyncratic, the timings and moods very personal. The playing matches the instrument perfectly (one realizes the organs must have been particularly chosen). One has the feeling that Walcha doesn't have time for your interest in how he plays. E. Power Biggs' recordings - and this is not meant as a criticism because they are potent and beautiful, too - feel more oriented towards how he thinks you'd like to hear Bach. Walcha doesn't care, one senses, about the listener's liking, because he is so consumed in "playing himself out" - displaying an intensely personal style that makes the work all the more powerful. Walcha trusts implicitly in Bach: The interpretation is pure, in that sense. Just as listening to Rostropovich's Bach Cello Suites (with his tremendous faith in Bach) makes Yo-Yo Ma's version (which tries to make Bach into something for the modern ear) sound utterly different from before, this will change your idea of what Bach could, should, sound like, on the most complicated musical instrument ever invented." Report Abuse

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