Switched On Bach
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Template:Album infobox Switched-On Bach is a 1968 album by Wendy Carlos on CBS Records . It was the first record to popularise music performed on synthesizers, and resulted in a huge increase in interest in synthesizers, particularly Moog synthesizers. The album was the first classical album to go platinum. It went quickly to the Top 10 in Billboard's pop Top 200 and stayed on the chart for more than a year. In the 1970 Grammy awards, the album took three prizes: Best Classical Album, Best Classical Music Performance, Instrumental Soloist(s) (With or Without Orchestra) and Best Classical Engineered Recording.
The album consists of a selection of pieces by Johann Sebastian Bach, performed on a Moog Modular synthesizer system (one can be seen at the back of the room on the album cover). Switched-On Bach, or S-OB as Carlos referred to it, was recorded on an 8 track Ampex tape recorder using numerous takes and overdubs. This was long before the days of MIDI sequencers and recording the album was a tedious and time-consuming process.
Carlos followed the release of this album with a number of other classical Moog albums:
- The Well-Tempered Synthesizer (Columbia 1969)
- Switched-On Bach II (Columbia 1974)
- By Request (Columbia 1975)
- Switched-On Brandenburgs Vol 1 & 2 (Columbia 1979)
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Influence
The album was given a mixed reaction at the time of its release. Some critics reviled it for trivialising the work of one of the most revered classical composers of all time, but others were excited by the freshness of the sound and the virtuosity that went into its creation. Regardless of the negative reviews, the album caught the public attention and sold better than anyone had expected. Suddenly Moog's company found itself inundated with requests from the record companies for Moog systems, and a rash of Moog synthesizer albums were released to capitalise on the popularity of the new sound.
Some of these albums were similar to S-OB in being synthesized versions of classical pieces including:
- The Moog Strikes Bach by Hans Wurman. (RCA 1969)
- Switched on Gershwin by Gershon Kingsley (Avco 1970)
- Everything you always wanted to hear on the Moog by Andrew Kazdin and Thomas Z. Shepard (CBS 1973)
- The Unusual Classical Synthesizer (ABC 1972) by Mike Hankinson
Others capitalised on the Moog craze by creating synthesized versions of other contemporary artists or genres:
- Switched On Bacharach by Christopher Scott. (Decca 1969)
- Music to Moog By by Gershon Kingsley (Audiofidelity 1969)
- MOOG plays the Beatles Marty Gold (Avco 1970)
- Country Moog - Switched on Nashville by Gil Trythall (Athena 1970)
Track listing for Switched-On Bach
- Sinfonia to Cantata No. 29
- Air on a G String
- Two-Part Invention in F Major
- Two-Part Invention in B Flat Major
- Two-Part Invention in D Minor
- Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring
- Prelude and Fugue No. 7 in E Flat Major
- Prelude and Fugue No. 2 in C Minor
- Chorale Prelude "Wachet Auf"
- Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major - Allegro
- Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major - Adagio
- Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major - Allegro
Personnel
- Wendy Carlos - Keyboards, programming
- Rachel Elkind - Producer
Re-releases
Carlos also released Switched-On Bach 2000 in 1992 to celebrate 25 years since the release of the original album. It features the original album program plus a few additional tracks. In 1999, she released the Switched-On Bach Boxset, a lavishly produced 4-CD boxset comprising the following albums:
- Switched-On Bach
- The Well-Tempered Synthesizer
- Switched-On Bach II
- Switched-On Brandenburgs
The albums have been remastered by Carlos herself and include some bonus tracks. The boxset also includes a 150 page booklet with photos, production notes, etc.