Pinchgut Opera | Erin Helyard plays Bach‘s Goldberg Variations

March 1, 2025, City Recital Hall, Sydney, NSW

JS BACH (1685-1750) – Goldberg Variations BWV988

Performed by Erin Helyard  |  Presented by Pinchgut Opera 

Nearly 1 year ago the Sydney Symphony Orchestra promoted the Icelandic pianist Víkingur Ólafsson in a sold out recital of the Goldberg Variations in the Sydney Opera House. It was a great event and the audience lapped it up and still I so much wanted to hear it on harpsichord, so when the Pinchgut Opera promotion of Australia’s famed keyboard whizz Erin Helyard was announced I knew immediately that it was a concert I wanted, actually, needed to attend. I looked forward with great anticipation to the special sound of the harpsichord and how it conjures up a different harmonic field than that of a piano. 

Another aspect that is so different between the harpsichord and the modern piano when playing Bach is that certain techniques more often suited to Liszt or Rachmaninov, such as accentuating certain notes to make the melodic or bass line more prominent, are not possible on the harpsichord. Bach creates all the variety needed by the level of activity in the music – not many notes here, then frantic, all of a sudden intellectual and mathematical to be followed by a calmness so surprising it almost shocks!  

In the 21st century to listen to Bach’s Goldberg Variations in concert is a treat and the 80+ minutes or so of performance time can float by in what seems a dream. It is a privilege to have in Sydney a harpsichordist of the skill and imagination of Erin Helyard. He obviously has a fine fan base with Pinchgut Opera as the standing ovation from the near capacity audience testifies and his measured and truly superb performance deserved the accolades he received. Helyard obviously loves the sound of the harpsichord and he searches for exactly the right tone colour to go with each movement and that further influences the speed the music is played. He employed all the magic that comes from the magnificent double manual instrument made by the Sydney master instrument builder, Carey Beebe.   

Everyone who loves the Goldberg Variations has their own favourite movements and for me there are way too many to mention all. So, I will limit myself to just a couple. Helyard thrilled with variations 19 and 20 and the use of a single keyboard followed by both manuals gave a perfect example of the true colour range available to the performer. The richness of variation 29 and then the quasi-solemn joke like final variation always touch and amuse me and Helyard made the music come off the page and sing and dance! 

And having started from an ethereal place, the serene aria, Bach traverses 30 Variations as if climbing a mountain to find the exact same ethereal place he left at the beginning. And what glorious journey it is. 

Photo Credit: Cassandra Hannagan