Ceal Floyer
Goldberg Variation, 2002

Artist
Ceal Floyer

Title
Goldberg Variation

Year of creation
2002

Technology and duration
of sound installation, 5.09 min.

Year of acquisition
2020

Donor
Dr. Christian Bauschke

Acquisition of the foundation

In this sound work, Ceal Floyer deals with the Goldberg Variations by Johann Sebastian Bach. The piece, in which a basic theme, the “Aria”, is varied 30 times, followed by another Aria, is considered the epitome of perfectly constructed music. The artist acoustically places the aria of all the recordings of the Goldberg Variations that she was able to get hold of on CD on top of each other in a "sandwich process" - so you can hear all the interpretations at the same time: Floyer's variation of the variations. The piece begins with one note, but then tonal chaos breaks out because each pianist plays at different speeds. When the fastest performers are already finished and only the slow ones can be heard, the chaos slowly dissipates. Until in the end only the playing of one, the slowest interpreter remains - and the piece ends in perfect harmony again.