The Whole Music Experience

Classical   Javier Perianes   Les Sons et les Parfums   Debussy meets Chopin   Harmonia Mundi    Chopin and Debussy were both known for composing diffused music for the piano, however, while Debussy also composed for ballet, opera, and chamber ensembles, Chopin strictly composed for piano.   Oddly, when I brought up Chopin’s music once to a colleague, he made a grave error in describing Chopin’s music as “small,” simply because Chopin composed for a single instrument.   Any pianist that has performed Chopin’s keyboard work would not use the word “small” to describe it.    Even listening to Chopin’s mazurkas and nocturnes, provide fascinating contours and development of musical themes, despite the lack of a symphonic or orchestral association.   And even though Chopin did not shout virtuosity like Liszt, Rachmaninoff or Prokofiev or provide mental gymnastics like Bach, Chopin’s seemingly quiet and s...

World   Yungchen Lhamo & Anton Batagov Tayatha   Cantaloupe Music In 1998, I attended WOMAD USA and witnessed an entrancing performance by Tibetan vocalist Yungchen Lhamo on a small stage.   I witnessed a second performance by the vocalist, equally mesmerizing but on the main stage at WOMAD USA in 2001.   Although I acquired Lhamo’s recordings 2nd and 3rd), on the Real World label, I didn’t care for the musical production on the recordings which buried Lhamo’s vocals underneath high-end guitar washes and programming.   Lhamo has one of those voices that works best in an a cappella setting or lightly framed by a single musical instrument. Fortunately for us, the vocalist paired up with Russian classical pianist Anton Batagov on the recording, Tayatha where the musicians read each others' instincts.   Batagov’s piano though light on the keys possesses shades of virtuoso and waxes musical poetry.   The piano and vocals show up...

Classical Julian Cochran Extracts From Romanian Dances, Animation Suite and Mazurkas Independent release English pianist virtuoso/composer Julian Cochran gazes fondly at Eastern European folk dances and 19th and 20th century composers who composed mainly for piano.  While Cochran has a good ear for delightful and playful melodies, his compositions don't stray far from piano works by Liszt, Ravel, and Prokofiev.  In fact, my first impression of the opening piece, Russian Toccata  (on the CD Extracts from Romanian Dances...) reminded me of Prokofiev from the first quirky piano phrase, and since I like Prokofiev, I mean "quirky" as a compliment.  While the pieces here are obviously finger-twisters, in their complexity and speed, Cochran plays with these pieces with gleeful abandonment. The folkloric dances appear on tracks 3 through 7 and for this section, I'm reminded of Chopin's dreamy piano works.  The only problem I have with this recording is ...

Bezuidenhout (piano), Von der Goltz (violin) Freiburger Barockorchester Mendelssohn Double Concerto for Piano and Violin And Piano Concerto in A minor Harmonia Mundi Dubbed the Mozart of the 19 th century by Robert Schumann, imagine that Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (1809-1847) composed his Concerto for Piano and Strings in A minor when he was 13 and his Double Concerto for piano and violin the following year, prior to composing his famous overture for Midsummer Night’s Dream .   Much of the Bezuidenhout, Von der Goltz and Freiburger Barockorchester’s performance of these compositions sounds like Liszt, Rachmaninoff and Paganini rolled into one and sprinkled with Bach and Mozart.   This recording, a rare treat by any standards, easily ends up on my top 10 classical recordings for 2011.   The passion on the disc alone can heat my home. The recording opens with the Concerto for Piano and Strings features the balanced architecture of Bach...

San Francisco Symphony Michael Tilson Thomas Emanuel Ax (piano) Beethoven Symphony No. 5 and Piano Concerto No. 4 SFS Media/Harmonia Mundi If I had the chance to interview the late Joseph Campbell, I would have asked him about Beethoven’s 5th Symphony . After all, fate knocking at the door followed by a quest into darkness with the eventual emergence into triumph is what Campbell would have labeled, “a hero’s journey.” For Beethoven fate came knocking at the door alright. During the four years it took to write this short and powerful symphony, his hearing deteriorated, he suffered from a finger infection that could have destroyed his career (antibiotics weren’t discovered yet, infections could turn into gangrene…), the woman he loved married another man, and Napoleon occupied Vienna. And yet, the first movement that swayed under the weight of its anger and frustration, also supplies listeners with a few angelic interludes. But the strings burst in anger, the horns rant, a...

A Romance on Three Legs Glenn Gould’s Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Piano Katie Hafner Bloomsbury USA In 1982 or 1983 I experienced a supernatural encounter in a department store in north Bellingham. My mother and I both recall me walking up to one of those electronic keyboards in fashion at the time, turning it on, and then playing something virtuosic. I only remember turning the keyboard on and then waking from a trance and seeing a small crowd of people standing around applauding. My mother recalls the actual impromptu performance. Prior to this “episode” I had never taken piano lessons, thought I sucked as a musician based on a personal tragedy I experienced when I auditioned for the high school band and I had nearly flunked music theory at Western Washington University. I had given up the notion of ever pursuing my dream career as a musician or composer until a boost of confidence from the department store incident changed the course of my life. That was my firs...

Cèdric Tiberghien Chopin Mazurkas, Polonaise-Fantaisie, Scherzo and Nocturne Harmonia Mundi Listening to a Chopin piece feels like the equivalent to luxuriating in a delicious cup of tea. The Romantic era Polish composer/pianist’s compositions alternating between introspective and invigorating. His work centered on one instrument, the piano for the most part and this deeply expressive music can and does rival bigger orchestrated works of the Romantic Era. Perhaps Chopin represented the microcosm in relation to the macrocosm or the individual in relation to the whole. Even the piano/composer virtuoso Franz Liszt praised his contemporary. In the CD liner notes, Lizst cites, “…By restricting himself to the exclusive framework of the piano, Chopin has in our view demonstrated one of the most essential qualities for an author: a sure appreciation of form in which he is capable of excelling.” A half a century after Chopin composed his music, French Impressionist composer Maur...

Paul Lewis, Jiřì Bêlohlàvek and BBC Symphony Orchestra Beethoven Complete Piano Concertos Harmonia Mundi For many listeners, hearing Beethoven’s music could feel triumphant, victorious, and invigorating. For other listeners, the German composer’s work might feel fraught with anger, frustration, and darker emotions that they would rather not address. But for all of us, Beethoven can lead us into our darkest places where we can heal our wounds and emerge triumphant. That’s the journey that most of Beethoven’s music represents, bordering on shamanic, raising the dead parts of ourselves, and liberating ourselves from our oppressors, both inner and outer. Beethoven’s 5 piano concertos prove no exception to this concept. Our musical shaman in this case is pianist (I’m assuming he’s English) Paul Lewis who in the realm of Beethoven, takes charge of this domain and plays the concertos with a sense of authority and mastership. You can feel the triumphant moments as well as the sen...

Skruk For All Times Kirkelig Kulturverksted Kjetil Bjerkestrand Piano Poems Kirkelig Kulturverksted For All Times marks the Norwegian choir Skruk’s 33rd anniversary. Led by Per Oddvar Hildre, Skruk never ceases to surprise me with its delightful musical exchanges. According to the press notes, the innovative choir embarked on a variety of cross cultural projects with musicians from Central Asia, Central and South America and New Orleans. This retrospective CD features highlights from those musical explorations and also of its many soloists over the years including Palestinian Rim Bana on track 13. Many of the soloists have gone onto experience successful musical careers, as they should. The collection of beautiful voices on this recording could only be called sublime. What stands out for me is the breadth of the choir’s repertoire. You’ll hear Andes flutes (and percussion), on one piece, Silk Road percussion and instruments on another and New Orleans jazz on still anot...

Frèdèric Chopin (1810-1849) Stephen Hough Chopin Late Masterpieces Hyperion I regret that up until now, I have only heard Frèdèric Chopin’s music in passing. I heard waltzes and lullabies mostly, but I had never sat down with a recording and taken a good listen or attended a piano recital of Chopin’s music. I knew tidbits of information about the Polish composer’s tumultuous relationship with French author George Sands (a woman) and his death at a young age from TB, but only now with the 200th anniversary of Chopin’s birth (he was either born in February 22 or March 1 in 1810), am I getting acquainted with the composer and virtuoso pianist. I received English pianist extraordinaire Stephen Hough’s Chopin (Late Masterpieces) recording in the mail yesterday. The premise behind the recording revolves around the innovations and transformations that take place in an artist’s work during the last years of life. Many great artists of various disciplines are mentioned in the line...

Andràs Schiff Ludwig van Beethoven The Piano Sonatas Vol. VI ECM New Series Hungarian classical pianist Andràs Schiff took up the gauntlet of recording the Beethoven cycle (piano sonatas) in order. Ludwig van Beethoven The Piano Sonatas, Volume VI brings us up to the period between 1804 and 1810, during which the infamous "Appassionata" was composed. The works on this recording, Sonatas #22 through #26, explore a vast range of emotions, colors and textures--a range that seems like a piece of cake in Schiff's expressive hands. I have reviewed volumes II and III of this series and have been astounded by Schiff's immense gift as a pianist. While he fits into the realm of virtuoso, he does not appear to be showing off. His playing is absent of bravado and full of humanity, not to mention curiosity towards Beethoven's life and music, since one informs the other. Not only that, one of my favorite things to do is to crank up the volume on these recordings so...