No purity laws

The classical guitar is like the opera house: it has a repertoire problem. It's not that few notes have been written for the guitar. What is missing is substance. Anyone who has ever encountered sonatas by Mauro Giuliani or Fernando Sor will know the qualitative difference to Schubert's or Beethoven's piano works. Many guitarists make a virtue out of necessity: they transcribe. Questionable transcriptions have already been made, for example an arrangement of Modest Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition that misses the point of the guitar. Far more fruitful is the transcription of Bach's works. Be it selected preludes from the Well-Tempered Clavier, the cello suites or the violin sonatas - the richness of color on the one hand and the polyphonic possibilities on the other can reveal undiscovered layers of the originals.
Matthias Kläger took matters into his own hands. He did not follow the "German purity requirement" of many other transcriptions, but added a voice or a bass note to the violin sonatas BWV 1001, 1003 and 1005 at one point or another. In the booklet text, he outlines his ideal transcription as follows: "When listening to the guitar version, one should get the impression that the pieces were written precisely for this instrument and could not be performed just as well (or better) on any other." Not only his arrangement, but also his playing fulfill this pious wish. Kläger, who teaches at the Zurich University of the Arts, wonderfully expands the natural linear flow of the violin sonatas. Variable tempi, no slavishly followed terrace dynamics make the playing a fine feast for the ears. At no point does Kläger allow himself to be overly seduced by the many tonal possibilities of the guitar, but knows how to use them discreetly. This superbly produced CD is a demonstration of excellent technique and a musicality that is unparalleled among guitarists. For almost an hour, the repertoire problem is forgotten.

Matthias Kläger: Complete Sonatas for Violin Solo (BWV 1001, 1003, 1005). Transcription for guitar. Acustica Records 1020