Although not quite at the level of profundity of his teacher
Gustav Leonhardt's recording,
Kenneth Gilbert's 1983 recording of Book 1 of Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier does have a style and polish that
Leonhardt's too often lacked. Thus, while
Leonhardt goes further into some of the minor-key fugues to find intellectual and spiritual depths that
Gilbert does not plumb,
Gilbert's playing is so much more elegant and graceful than
Leonhardt's that it is difficult to choose between them. For listeners who approach The Well-Tempered Clavier as a volume of virtuoso works whose success depends on the effortless refinement of the player, the
Gilbert, with its superbly remastered sound, will be the one to get. For listeners who approach The Well-Tempered Clavier as a volume of prayers written as preludes and fugues, the
Leonhardt will be preferable. Both are superb and both belong in any Bach collection.