I had the great privilege of hearing Ralph Kirkpatrick in recital when I was in college. Elderly, blind, infirm, he walked out to the harpsichord following a string that led him onto the stage. He seated himself, found middle C and proceeded to play a program of Scarlatti et al. that was phenomenal, leaping with supernatural accuracy between the two keyboards, reveling in the textures, making the harpsichord come alive. It was one of the most impressive and moving performances I have ever heard. This comprehensive set of Bach's keyboard pieces contains virtually all the important pieces aside from the Well Tempered Clavier, and it is, as the previous reviewer points out, an opportunity for us to reevaluate Kirkpatrick's contribution. I thought the recording seemed a bit too close, but at a suitably reduced volume level, this set is a real treat. Kirkpatrick was a pioneer of harpsichord playing, a great scholar whose biography of Scarlatti is a real musicological monument, and a persuasive, passionate musician. His recordings of the Well Tempered Clavier on the clavichord are also available, and are, in my opinion, even better.
![DG's The Originals [6]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51TQSN2KF7L._AA60_.jpg)
![DG's The Originals [7]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61fSmDL3SDL._AA60_.jpg)
