No. 5: Prelude and Fugue in D major, BWV 850 by Johann Sebastian Bach, Performed by Prof. Dror Biran

FULL DETAILS:

Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach
Work: The Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1 No. 5: Prelude and Fugue in D major, BWV 850 by Johann Sebastian Bach, Performed by Prof. Dror Biran
Performed by: This live performance without an audience was performed by Dror Biran, Prof. at the College-Conservatory of Music University of Cincinnati.

You can find the full performance of Bach’s The Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1 right here on YouTube, on Dror Biran’s channel.


ABOUT THE WORK:

It is believed that J. S. Bach begun writing the Well-Tempered Clavier book 1 in prison! It is incredible to imagine how, despite physical confinement, his mind was free and able to create such a groundbreaking, “out of the box” musical collection.

The Well-Tempered Clavier, by #Bach, is comprised by two sets of #preludes and #fugues in all 24 major and minor keys for keyboard. In the composer's time, clavier, meaning keyboard, referred to a variety of instruments, most typically the harpsichord or clavichord, but did not exclude the organ.



ABOUT PROF. DROR BIRAN:

Winner of top prizes at the M.K Čiurlionis International Piano Competition, the Cleveland International Piano among others, Israeli-American pianist Dror Biran has been described by The Cleveland Plain Dealer as “his fortissimos crashed and roared, but next to them came pianissimos that whispered seductively…he has technique to burn and uses it effectively.” Biran’s superb tonal control combined with interesting phrasing and voicing has won him consistent critical acclaim and enthusiastic audiences.

Biran has performed widely as a soloist with major orchestras including the Lithuanian Philharmonic Orchestra, RTVE Symphony Orchestra of Spain, Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Louisville Orchestra and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. He has played under the batons of Etinger, Rodan, Gueller, Gacia Asensio, Mester, Lane and others. His concert tours have taken him to the United States, Israel and South Africa, South Korea and China along with Eastern and Western Europe.

As an avid chamber musician, Biran has appeared on a regular basis with different music ensembles such as Carmel, Amernet and Aviv String Quartets. He premiered works by Grawemyer and Rome Award winners such as York Höler and Sebastian Currier. His concerts have been broadcast by WUOL, WCLV, WQXR, The Voice of Music – Israel and Classic FM South Africa, among others. Biran can be heard on the JMC (Jerusalem Music Centre) and Centaur labels.

A recipient of multiple scholarships from the America-Israel Cultural Foundation for distinguished musicians, Biran began his piano studies with Ms. Lily Dorfman, and mentored by Arie Vardi, Paul Schenly, Daniel Shapiro and Lee Luvisi. He graduated from Rubin Academy of Music at Tel-Aviv University and the Cleveland Institute of Music where he received his doctorate degree in piano performance.

Biran taught at the University of Louisville, Youngstown State University and Case Western Reserve University. Currently, he serves as Professor of Piano at the College-Conservatory of Music University of Cincinnati.


CREDITS:

Michael Chertock - Artistic Advisor
Eric Wolfley and Rebecca Whitaker - Piano Technicians
Produced by Joel Crawford Recording - Cincinnati
Robert J. Werner Recital Hall
University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music