Bach - Prelude BWV 997 Played On Lute-Harpsichord (Gergely Sárközy)

Johann Sebastian Bach (31 March, 1685 - 28 July 1750) was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist of the Baroque Period. His music is revered for its intellectual depth, technical command, and artistic beauty.
The lautenwerck (also spelled lautenwerk), or lute-harpsichord (lute-clavier), was a European keyboard instrument of the Baroque period. It was similar to a harpsichord, but with gut rather than metal strings, producing a mellow tone; one of Bach's favorite keyboard instruments, which is now almost impossible to hear on record. It's truly wonderful, with a deep, rich and resonant sound. No wonder Bach had one custom-built to his own specifications. He owned two of the instruments at the time of his death, but no specimens have survived to the present day. It was revived in the 20th century and two of its most prominent performers are the early music specialists Gergely Sárközy and Robert Hill.
Gergely Sárközy is a Hungarian musician who plays guitar, lute, lute-harpsichord, viola bastarda, and organ.

[@DerlyPintosTapia]

This is the darkest sound I hear!. With great power in the bass. It is a dream

[@Nicolas-zb9uw]

I agree. Harpischord seems to metalic a sound for me . I prefer luth harpischord.Harmonics appears more richer to me .

[@mattbod]

I agree a theorbo sounds better still and more expressive but they were getting too big and complicated.

[@miklosczovek2337]

The instrument is built by Gergely Sarkozi who performed this suite on it. The Hungarian LP booklet provides a lots of details about the instrument design and built process. This LP for me is the one of the deepest and most authentic Bach interpretation what I ever heard.

[@DerlyPintosTapia]

My version kzbin.info/www/bejne/hWXLkKSpmt1-q9E&start_radio=1

[@lavieestunsonge4541]

I concur 😊

[@LaFlaneuse0]

The instrument is magnificent

[@BohemianBaroque]

Yikes! Could this be my favorite keyboard instrument of all time? The lute and harpsichord's love child!

[@Suprachemistry]

God blessed humanity with one more musical instrument!

[@metteholm4833]

God didn´t make it....humanity did.

[@Mau365PP]

I like how angry the prelude sounds !

[@benjaminjohannessanchez3310]

I would prefer the word... moody or intimidating demeanour... lol

[@dillbo5894]

looks so strange but its got a warm sounding tone

[@phosphoros60]

Now this is disturbing; I just the other day thought, "What would a harpsichord sound like if its... 'corpus' for lack of a better word resembled that of a guitar?" - and today this is in my recommendations... Get out of my head Google!!!

[@salvat3735]

Karens: it's the 5G and the chip Bill Gates installed on you!

[@phosphoros60]

@@salvat3735 Confirmation Bias is one helluva drug

[@johnb6723]

I never really understand why they're dabbling in 5G when 4G is not yet fully mastered. With 4G fully mastered, one should get a consistent 100Mbps plus data connection. That isn't the case yet.

[@marclikens]

While I don't doubt that the Illuminati Deep State has infected your mind with the 5G-mind-control beams, this instrument sounds like this because it has nylon strings, not because it is shaped any particular way. The instrument actually being recorded may just be shaped like a normal harpsichord--not the picture. The material of the string, and where it is plucked will have more effect on the tone, then the shape of the resonator.

[@menialharpsichordist553]

@@marclikens it's could also jsut be the lute stop ojn a harpsichord and no, thee is no illuminati deep state

[@xbqchm]

@Composer Rouge Ending minor pieces on a major chord is a very old tradition originating from renaissance vocal music. It had practical reasons: minor final chords in large cathedrals sounded odd because of the resonance of the hall, so they started to use major chords instead of minor in minor pieces. It is called the picardy third.

[@paulcaswell2813]

So very typical of the English Virginalists!

[@soundknight]

Picarty tearse I thought it was called.

[@julianmatthews5785]

Brian Cullen tierce in French means third like quinte means fith an octave stays the same

[@RitaPas]

it is called "Tierce de Picardie".

[@julianmatthews5785]

@@RitaPas yes exactly, in french anyway

[@luismartinez-hd8rj]

Llevo escuchando música de Bach desde que tenía 8 años (ahora tengo 60), y no para de sorprenderme, siempre encuentras cosas nuevas, como esta maravillosa obra interpretada por este bellísimo instrumento. En Bach siempre encuentro lo que busco, no me hace falta ningún compositor más.

[@isaiasramosgarcia9771]

es muy injusto k desprecies a otros compositores de enorme talento

[@luismartinez-hd8rj]

i

[@luismartinez-hd8rj]

Isaías:En mi nota no hay nada que pueda inducir a pensar que desprecio a los otros compositores. El que yo ame a mi mujer, no quiere decir que desprecie a las demás. Por supuesto que hay otros grandes compositores. También me gustan mucho Vivaldi, Boccherini, Chopin, Bruckner, Shostakovich, Procofiev y muchos otros. Pero siempre vuelvo a Bach porque su música es la que más me llega.De todas maneras. la música es para disfrutarla, así que cada cual debe escuchar la que más le guste.Un saludo

[@alessiocai9952]

@@luismartinez-hd8rj bien dicho, yo soy músico del barroco puro y escucho muchas obras barrocas pero siempre vuelvo a mi dosis diaria de Bach una sola música de Bach simplemente es impresionante tienen tantas cosas y detalles más que cualquier compositor romanticismo con todo su álbum junto

[@kennethprimack6467]

There is MUSIC… and, then, there is BACH - a reality unto itself!

[@rasohatskiy_andriy.]

Prelude is my favourite movement!!! From 0:55 to 1:09 it is the greatest power in bass!

[@htr98]

I love this timbre!

[@m.andreassembdner2700]

Ein solches Instrument habe ich bisher weder gesehen noch gehört. Die musikalische Welt ist eben ganz wunderbar und hält immer wieder neue Überraschungen bereit, danke!

[@rusticagenerica]

I just asked God to personally bless you a gazillion times, for allowing me to discover Sárközy Gergely, this unbelievable artist. I hope to meet him.

[@jeremymozlin]

This is incredible. I love his interpretations, and the sound coming from the instrument is unlike that of any lautenwerk I've heard before. It's those metal octaves!

[@777rogerf]

Well said. The instrument lacks the capacity to vary the touch, yet the performance is more expressive rather than less so with subtle rubato. Why would this not be Bach's favorite chamber instrument?

[@KasraRavanbakhsh]

Watch the prelude played on piano here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m4Lbop6Ehs6BZ80

[@user-vl1rf2zw6f]

​@@KasraRavanbakhsh i Kind o like the harpsiluth way more. Maybe its professional recorded than the Piano Video, maybe just with Mobile phone???

[@KasraRavanbakhsh]

@user-vl1rf2zw6f First of all, it is the personal taste, the sound of which instrument you like better. Also this recording with Lautenwerk has been done in a professional recording studio, whereas my recording on the piano has been done in an ordinary home with not ideal acoustics. Also the pianos which are used in commercial recordings are very expensive concert pianos which cost way over $100K up to $250K, with the recording equipment and studio that cost much more than the piano itself. So you shouldn't expect that level of sound quality from my recording with a cheap instrument and recording equipment. However it gives you some insights about how this piece would sound on a modern piano.

[@ranbirparmar9687]

Another one of Bach's gems !!!

[@Busywave]

I could listen all day.

[@panagiotislygouriotis7684]

The lute-harpsichord was Johann Sebastian Bach's favourite instrument!

[@verticalmatt]

was it now

[@Eroamagorath]

@@verticalmatt it might have been for some time, hard to know for how long. It is documented that he did like the instrument a lot. Nevertheless I'd argue the organ was the instrument which held that place for the longest.

[@sssnacksss]

he became utterly entranced by the moog synthesizer in the 1960s

[@felang-9363]

​@@sssnacksss Can confirm. Saw him frequently outside Paris cafes with his Moog. Usually with multiple women.

[@abolisseur]

@@sssnacksss tu as mangé un clown

[@medora2499]

This is incredible! I wish there was a video of someone plating this instrument.

[@Discrimination_is_not_a_right]

Look up "lautenwerk"

[@madaboutvoice]

Never heard a lute-harpsichord as sonorous as this here instrument. The playing isn't to be sneezed at, either. Just wonderful! Thank you 𝙍𝙝𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙢 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙤 for sharing this, please upload the remainder of this CD and any other recordings by Maestro Sárközy! Cheers

[@arnoldhemsley9317]

I wonder if old JSB danced the tango with Mrs Bach of a Saturday night to the tune of one these instruments. This was in fact his favorite keyboard instrument.

[@HalJikaKick]

I had this CD in the 90’s then loaned to someone and never got it back. This is why I love the KZbins. I think he plays the fugue a bit too slow but unlike the lute, he has more sustain to work with so I see why they did it. Very unique ornamentation ideas that at times border on a cadenza.

[@johnferguson8993]

What a wonderful instrument, love it!

[@gainweighttoday]

Wonderful! So much tone and color.

[@ProdigyImprovisation]

I WANT TO GET ONE SOOOO BADDLYY!! It's amazing, it kinda sounds like deep metal rock instrumental except it's actually an acoustic instrument sounding so much pure & original in its quality of tone unlike ANY other electronic sound ever produced by anyone ever!!! This is the 2nd alpha & omega of all acoustic instruments except from the Organ itself! I will find someone who is a modern day harpsichord maker & specialist to make me a custom specification of my idea of a proper lute harpsichord case & guts in order to have one for myself for my future compositions!! This is a MUST have, it feels my heart with soo much gratitude of such a unique & permanent sound it has!! We have to make this instrument soo much more popular now a days, this instrument cannot go extinct ever, I WILL make sure it will not! And instead will try to modernize it forever for future generations & so on!

[@jordanmrivera]

ProdigyImprovisation This is the website of a maker: www.lautenwerk.com/harpsichord_price_list.htm

[@arsantiqua8741]

Make an ornamental baroque nightmare following the romanesca progression!

[@contactarlo]

Max Doronin makes them in Europe. He studied with Keith Hill, Robert Hill's brother.

[@subfragment]

ProdigyImprovisation who today makes one by hand, and, how long does it take?

[@RexakonGaming]

any luck on finding one?

[@speedstick77]

Wonderful instrument; wonderful playing. Thank you!

[@muserik]

Yes, wonderful deep&rich bass tones. Exuberant ornementation!

[@paulnijsten6360]

has been my favourite cd in my collection for years. a monument to human ingenuity

[@ElaineComparone]

Fantastic!

[@TheModernHermeticist]

This is nuts!!!

[@AaronGlenn88]

just learned the first section! love this work!

[@HelenaWilliams8696]

Wonderfully performed in counterpoint, harmonic, motivic organisation & tempo. A well enjoyable Prelude BWV 997 by amazing Bach in the HARPSICHORD!

[@haveswordwilltravel]

Beautifully played.

[@tiziano432]

Bellissimo!

[@juancarlosuribe6533]

Maravilloso, escuchar a Bach en un instrmento de su época y en piano. Felicidades. Además se respeta el tempo y la ejecución como ha debido ser en su época.

[@youssef45031]

I love the interpretation so much , its very nicely Calibrated , bach should be played like this !

[@Terrdemarzielle]

What exactly do you mean by 'nicely calibrated'?

[@loeuvrededieu]

Beautiful

[@Hamstray]

Bach seems to have this natural talent for killing off suspense.

[@douglasdickerson5184]

My favorite!! 💙💙💙

[@ylevane]

Amazing..!

[@marienvanegmond6482]

Heel bijzonder instrument, mooie klank.

[@broquemusician]

UNBELIEVEABLE, why is there not a single video of this instrument today :(

[@MAJDSHWIKAN]

speechless !

[@eze6285]

The tone of this thing is 👌 👌 👌

[@derwishrenegat743]

Незвичайний інструмент і надзвичайне виконання Метра Баха. An unusual instrument and an extraordinary performance of Maestro Bach

[@Cfb2987]

This sounds dope.

[@johnwight6041]

Amazing to hear this piece on the actual instrument (the lautenwerk) it was composed for by Bach. It really brings out a different character!

[@vhsjpdfg]

This music speaks to my soul.

[@alanjknig]

great

[@M.B.331]

This lute-harpsichord has a beautiful sound! ❤ Better than harpsichord, clavichord, spinet or virginal... 🎼🎶

[@infinitefretboard]

Is it just me or is that prelude straight up gangsta?

[@dennispearson9287]

No !!!......This Is Not An ILLUSION !!...This IS Straight Up GANGSTER !!!.....I Had To Verify This REALITY !!!.....

[@infinitefretboard]

@@dennispearson9287 I'm glad you agree.

[@dennispearson9287]

@@infinitefretboard No Problem !!...

[@liviu1266]

@@infinitefretboard What the fuck did I just read

[@baronmeduse]

@@liviu1266 More of that stuff where metal and rap fans think they've discovered Bach was a 'homie'.

[@youngminkwon616]

Legend

[@mabel8179]

Interesting sounding instrument. I'd love to see a video of one being played!

[@michaelkac9158]

Watch kzbin.info/www/bejne/hmPWdIFpaN1shNU.

[@yiannisgalidakis8250]

I got this CD as a gift from a friend back in ~2000. I've played it through a Mac Performa 5200, through a Pioneer TableTop player, through a Compaq pressario and through a modern Win 10 laptop. it's the most played CD I own. It has destroyed all the CD players I've tried it into, with the exception of the last one. Terrific performance. Too bad Sarkozy didn't produce more Bach recordings through this weird instrument. In some bios of Bach I've read, it is mentioned as his favourite instrument - among harpsichords and early pianos, although historically its exact form/structure is not really known.

[@oxoelfoxo]

would have ripped it into a lossless format as soon as I could

[@Alanicus1]

Incredible sound. Very interesting to compare it with the many classical guitar versions of this piece - much darker and dare I say, somewhat manic! Excellent performance though.

[@blackdogxx]

What a tone! To our modern ears it evokes horror movies, but the sound is sophisticated and like a harpsichord, accordion, and piano all thrown in a magical blender.

[@verticalmatt]

only to amewricans

[@verticalmatt]

everything "classic" is thought of as horrendous in america. see good architecture: the adams family. Classical Paintings and Museums: Ghostbusters.

[@777rogerf]

@@verticalmatt Only to the tone-deaf wherever they are.

[@FoNarnia1]

Interesting sound, I've never heard a lute harpsichord. I still prefer the regular lute but maybe that's because I'm biased toward guitar things, although you can't have dynamic contrast with a harpsichord. I love the performer for this though, lovely improvisation.

[@CarmenReyes-em9np]

De lo mejor como pianista gracias 🌹

[@ednadasilva3611]

Com a alma a pequena partitura a aquarela dos pensamento me rodei e cada.nota um descrição pra mergulhar nas profundezas da mente que pouco sei

[@tatikotatiko1388]

oh, that timbre!

[@archy9752]

You can find it on iTunes as a digital download, just search for "Gergely Sárközy" without quotes.

[@5610winston]

Words do not exist to describe the sound of this instrument. What would I give to hear it in person?

[@Gubancosful]

Nem is tudtam, hogy létezett ilyen hangszer. Most először hallok róla, ezért úgy gondolom, hogy nincs már sok fellelhető ilyen hangszer. Érdekelne, hogy hol van az a darab, amelyen feljátszottad a felvételt. Köszönöm ha válaszolsz.

[@lauterunvollkommenheit4344]

Ha jól emlékszem, maga Sárközy Gergely készítette a hangszert. Egy létező csembalót épített át.

[@oscarlasprilla9345]

In a gentler and quieter Era, this Instrument must have been a Musician's Dream and Fantasy......

[@mhdfrb9971]

They should revive this instrument like they did with Harpsichord

[@rmanzanog1]

I bought the vynil in the 80s, but this one looks like a CD. Now I don't have it, but I remember there were also other Bach works like BWV 690 and BWV 691.

[@petrakov6531]

Oh I had the same vinyl in the 80s, I used to play it very regularly. Don't know what happened to my vinyl but I am so happy to have found this same version here.

[@TheMadisonHang]

this sounds so satisfyingly baroque

[@robotapartments]

thanks Professor KZbin

[@Cellosong2007]

I personally think that the Lautenwerk is better for small living room family concert or just simply for self-enjoyment. While the harpsichord is a chamber concert hall instrument for you to show off in front of large groups of audiences

[@MegaMech]

Should call it a Lupsi-chord, then if the manufacturer makes a mistake it would be called an Oopsi-chord.

[@shahedshayan9368]

MegaMech hahahaha

[@user-cn8wy9yi5e]

ya

[@johnb6723]

Lol.

[@cembaloish]

the gut strings have a lovely sound, but unable to produce much volume. This is a wonderful instrument and wonderful playing;. Lautenwerk is the spelling I know.

[@xbqchm]

@Helena Williams Lute and lute-harpsichord are not the same. Lute is a hand-held plucked instrument, while lute-harpsichord is a keyboard insturment similar to a normal harpsichord. The one in the picture is a lute-harpsichord.

[@HelenaWilliams8696]

+xbqchm Many thanks for the correction.

[@oskardolch9281]

It looks like an ordinary harpsichord, just a little bit streamlined :-)

[@guilhermecardoslopes]

I play harpsichord, at E.A.M.C.N. of Lisbon in Portugal, and I love it, but I still have none. I would like to have this harpsichord !!!!!!!!

[@guilhermecardoslopes]

I am portuguese!

[@alejandrom.4680]

You're proud of having your own hapsichord, my dream is have one, I have a 1 year in piano and I'm 14. I love the sound of this clavier, is like a Luth but in a keyboard. Two things that I love

[@guilhermecardoslopes]

But I do not have a harpsichord! I at home only have one fingered guitar and one piano but I never played piano only guitar. I' ve been at the piano since I was 3 years old! I Aldo like the sound of this harpsichord, Deonix Sad. It says anything!

[@guilhermecardoslopes]

Are you portuguese?

[@alejandrom.4680]

Guilherme Cardoso da Costa Borges Lopes I'm Uruguayan :(. I played guitar when i was 6 so, i have a hand bigger than the other one xD (exellent for piano). I started play piano since i was 12 and i hear baroque music since i was 9-10.

[@Annon197]

What a monstrosity! Sounds amazing

[@nagybaly123]

Actually Sarkozy created this instrument by modifying a Linholm harpsichord (made in the GDR (DDR)). He added some dampers ("lute register") to the strings. I not just like the resulting sound but his interpretation as well. The picture about the lute harpsichord added by the uploader is not that one which is played on the record.

[@aaaarghgl]

That's extremely interesting what you say. I'll be looking for sources now, but if you would like to provide them yourself, I really would be glad. Thank you.

[@bendeguznemes9871]

It's not true! He made the instrument!

[@bendeguznemes9871]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y4vRiaywZbV4kLM

[@emigrant58]

@@bendeguznemes9871 Ezt nem jól tudja. Sárközy tényleg a maga által átépített csembalón játszik a felvételen. Az igaz, hogy ő adta az ötletet Romanek Tihamérnak, és a képen valóban egy Romanek lantcsembaló látható, viszont a felvételen nem ez szól, hanem az átépített Linholm hangszer. Egyébként nem ez a lényeg, hanem az, ahogyan Sárközy Bachot játszik, gyakorlatilag mindegy, hogy milyen hangszeren. Óriási művész. Ahogy Romanek Tihamér zseniális hangszerész. Csak valahogy árnyékban maradtak. Sárközy ezen a felvételen valóban egy Romanek gitáron játszik: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f53SemtpobSEfJI

[@TubeSpoker]

I play it flawlessly on guitar... but it does not even compare to the force and importance that lute gives to the bass line ! This music makes more sense played on this instrument.

[@RexakonGaming]

TubeSpoker agreed

[@bckm54]

likey!!!

[@Whatismusic123]

This piece works far better on this instrument(duh) So many harpsichords have a lute setting, idk why people don't use that instead of performing this piece on the regular harpsichord mode.

[@ednadasilva3611]

3 como uma guerra fria com si mesmo pela perfeição seja na vida ,na arte ,na música ,no conhecimento o nós pensamento que embriaga a alma

[@SarumChoirmaster]

Amazing sound! I assume the strings are plucked like a harpsichord.

[@martingannas7376]

I like The soft and gentley tone. Colorfull, like a work of Cezanne or Matisse...

[@cembaloish]

I can't find this CD. I want to buy it.

[@Nicolas-zb9uw]

Thumbs up the video so it get traction ,please.

[@davidbento7441]

sounds so much like Wanda Landowska´s Pleyel "Monster" Harpsichord Q

[@harisamp]

It is played on a lautenwek. Bach's favourite instrument.

[@TheMadisonHang]

compared to a harpsichord this sounds better it doesn't have the brite bite of a harpsichord! its more mellowed out! its very nice!

[@hugoclarke3284]

Not all harpsichords have a bright bite

[@thomasciul8932]

I'm afraid the builder if that instrument missed. Point. The lautenwerk derives it sound from the string material and the string bridge anchor point. The lute shaped body is a waste of time. I've been making them for years and one right now for a lucky customer

[@Iceologer]

@Arigato Cat The musician isnt playing the lautenwerk shown in tthe video, he plays a different one

[@cembaloish]

Did anyone comment on the seller playing. Some o f the ornaments interfere with the line, but what the heck.

[@fludeball]

Imagine having to dust that thing.

[@verticalmatt]

wow espectacular!!!! comparar con version en laud de Evangelina MAscardi

[@vertepresto]

03:28 - fuga

[@j_thn]

I love that!

[@oskardolch9281]

fuga is a little bit boring. Gigue is much better and Double is absolutely fantastic. Unfortunately, these parts seem to be missing in this recoding.

[@xuanyinickliu6463]

Oskar Dolch try a Guitar version. This fugue could be very interesting and expressive

[@karlpoppins]

​@@xuanyinickliu6463 I came upon the fugue in my teens and it has become one of my favourite pieces to play on the guitar. Like the fugue from BWV 998, it is a da capo fugue, but BWV 997 is unique in that its subject is immediately introduced with the counter-subject, which is a palindrome of the pickup measure.

[@madaboutvoice]

@@oskardolch9281 Yes, just the prelude and fugue here and he does a repeat or two with some improv. tweaks with the fugue. The whole album, rare and very expensive to buy, is available on YT, just search Sarkozi+Bach, and it will pop up immediately (coupled with bwv996 and 3 chorales in between)... Oh, I found it, here it is :-) kzbin.info/www/bejne/bX23kH5qqLKWnKc

[@sirfadong8893]

I can play this on the guitar but piano the prelude and double is very difficult

[@CarmenReyes-em9np]

Bach ,es çoncentracion ,ya no se que pasa a mi alrededor. 🙂

[@jmb4969]

Prelude and Fugue only. Fugue starts at 3:27.

[@gustavopalma9451]

Gracias.

[@phillipjameson5085]

This is what plays when the vampire introduces himself.

[@isaiasramosgarcia9771]

la fuga es de 1 pieza para laud de J.S.Bach

[@DavidJohnson-xr2rz]

!!!!!!!!!!

[@maHaTma86]

So for my guitar i just ordered 4 gut treble strings for arround 65€ with the high e 2x as a backup. How expensive would it be to string up this beauty of a instrument?

[@metteholm4833]

Is this Bachs Lautenwerk? I´ve been wondering about both sound and look.

[@Nicolas-zb9uw]

How long can one play before the gut strings need to be tuned? 10 minutes ?

[@louisvonbeethoven]

Lute-harpsichord doesn't come up readily in a YT search. Should have put a guten tag in the description. (ducks out quickly)

[@dundoderdumme3044]

Still BACH..