Glenn Gould plays Bach's Chromatic Fantasy

Well, if you're wondering what chromatic means in music, this is a pretty good illustration. Chromatic means, essentially, the degree to which music strays from a key, or a tonal center. And, before perhaps Wagner (certainly Schoenberg), music did not get more chromatic than this. Glenn Gould's final comment, that this is "Bach for people who do not like Bach", I guess, means Bach for the musical avant garde of Gould's time who tended toward more chromaticism in music.

This illustrates the many mannerisms that made Glenn Gould Glenn Gould. His unusual posture at the piano, conducting with his free hand, perverse phrasing (extremely staccato or detaché), bringing out melodies in the lower and inner voices that you weren't aware were there, etc. People tend to love him or hate him, for all these reasons. My opinion is that this is a memorable and valuable performance, and, thankfully, there's no need to choose between traditional/moderate approaches and Gould's more extreme idiosyncratic style.

The odd dude in glasses at the end is Bruno Monsaingeon, Gould's biographer and friend.