This recording is another one of those gimmick" discs that Tacet is constantly throwing our way, with the end result being some seriously good listening for everyone. The concept here has the violinist, Saschko Gawriloff, playing seven different violins, of different vintages, in a kind of "show-down." All seven violins are used to play the Sarabande movement from Bach's Partita No. 2 in D, and then several of the individual violins are used for a variety of pieces including works from Veracini, Kreisler, Dvorak, Paganini and Webern. It's much more than just an exercise, hearing the seven instruments back-to-back playing Bach, and really interesting how very different they all do sound, indeed! The remaining tracks are all accompanied by Kira Ratner on piano, and all tracks are recorded using vintage tube microphones. The sound quality is uniformly superb, regardless of which layer you choose to listen to, though the SACD tracks get my nod for best overall sound. As with the Bach disc above, the multichannel layer uses the surround channels for additional ambience, which does help provide an improved perception of image depth. The supplied booklet has numerous photos, along with a brief history of each violin's maker. So which of the seven violins is the big winner? That's hard to say ? they all have their own uniquely impressive musical qualities ? but I don't think it's a coincidence that soloist Saschko Gawriloff chose three of the Cremona violins for use in three of the five additional works found on the disc. Whether the Guarneri, Stradivari or Amati was in use, each sang with a beauty and purity of tone that was just unmatched by the rest of the competition. Maybe there was something in the water, or the soil that the trees grew in that provided the wood for these incredible instruments ? whatever, nothing in modern times comes even close. Highly recommended." Tom Gibbs Total playing time: 52'40

Kevin Bowyer...has chosen to produce a series of carefully planned recitals, using the same Danish organ throughout, rather than grouping works together in their respective genres... Volume 2, a predominantly cheerful programme, brings more examples of Bowyer's lively rhythmic sytle and appealing colours and husky reeds of this fine Danish organ. -- The Penguin Guide to Compact Discs & DVDs

The tradition of transcribing, arranging and adapting the music of Johann Sebastian Bach can be traced to the master himself: Bach made a lifelong habit of arranging works, his own and those of other composers. Indeed, Bach ranks among the most skilled and prolific arrangers in the history of music. Arrangements of his work by others can be considered in two broad catagories. In the first are contained those transcriptions which do not incorporate substantial changes to the original compositions, for example Liszt's Six Preludes and Fugues. In the second category are found those arrangements which display a creative intent on the part of the arranger - one can think of Mozart's transcription for string trio of six fugues from The Well-Tempered Clavier, each preceded by an original prelude (KV 404a), or Gounod's Méditation sur le premier prélude de piano de S. Bach (1853), to which the words of the Ave Maria were subsequently added. It is to this latter genre of creative Bach transcriptions that the works contained on this disc belong. - Thomas Labé