The Goldberg Variations album review – Yeonshan Lim untangles Bach’s complex web of strings | classical music

Yeonshan Lim recorded Goldberg Variations live at Carnegie Hall last year, riding the momentum of a string of shows, including two in London. Those who enjoyed his interpretation at Wigmore Hall will find many of the same rewarding elements here, not least the apparent ease with which the 21-year-old pianist untangles the music’s complex web of threads. However, it is good to find that his interpretation was not set in stone. Perhaps the New York performance had a more forceful bent, or perhaps the hints of romanticism in the later London releases did not register as strongly in the recording as in the hall.

What’s most striking about the recording is the power in the faster variations that sometimes verges on the mechanical: impressive, and slightly over-the-top. There are touches of fun too – when in some variations he shifts an octave higher, the music sounds like it’s on helium, lighter than air. The slow contrast at the midpoint is deeply felt, and it’s a long 25^y The contrast is done poignantly without quite staring into the abyss as some shows do. It will be interesting to hear how Lem’s interpretation of the Goldberg family evolves over the years, but this is a good novel to start with.

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