​Bach’s Goldberg Variations were reportedly written for the Russian ambassador to Saxony, CountKeyserlingk, an incurable insomniac who required a ‘soothing and cheerful’ work to be played by hisharpsichordist Johann Gottlieb Goldberg during the night’s small hours. The aristocrat was delighted by Bach’s work, which stands today among the great landmarks of western art. Alexei Volodin explores two other virtuoso scores in a programme of vivid colours and expressive contrasts.​