♪ MusicAges 16–18
The Goldberg Variations, BWV 988
Johann Sebastian Bach · 1741
ProtestantEuropean
An aria and thirty variations. Bach's most patient demonstration of what a single melodic frame can hold. Glenn Gould recorded it twice — fast in 1955, slow in 1981 — and both recordings are educations in themselves.
Listening resources
These are free or public-domain recordings and performances wherever possible.