Instrumental
CD and Other Review

Review: Grant Foster: Works for Piano (Grant Foster)

Hitting play on Grant Foster’s world premiere recordings – When Love Speaks – I am nicely settled and ready to pen my review. What I am not ready for is the raw romance of this solo pianist and composer; to be struck and emotionally swayed by his music in less than five seconds flat. What is this beautiful work? Romance in C Sharp Minor brings us the feel of its title, and holds nothing back – while powerful, it exposes a vulnerability that reaches the heart. Romance in C follows, leading us into a gentler introspection. After its soothing introduction, a pure melody line with just enough harmonic support tells us its story; Foster continues this style through each piece. We hear rises and falls one would expect from Romantic works written more than a century ago. Foster’s music is ambitiously reminiscent of the greats, notably Chopin and Rachmaninov, but with an accessible human touch. I nearly leap out of my seat when I hear the Piano Sonata, which opens with a darkness successfully indicative of its dedication to those lost in war. Elegy is a stirring homage to Sir Robert Helpmann; and Six Preludes, like much of Foster’s work,…

June 30, 2017
Instrumental
CD and Other Review

Review: Beethoven: Piano Sonatas (Paavali Jumppanen)

Finnish pianist Paavali Jumpannen’s formidable repertoire includes cycles of Mozart and Beethoven, his Boulez Sonatas are critically acclaimed, and he is a vigorous champion of new music. Jumpannen’s scholarly and voracious approach is reflected in meticulously researched liner notes for this fourth instalment in his cycle of Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas. This set covers seven middle-period works: Sonatas 16-18 (Op. 31, from 1802), and 24-27 (Opp. 78, 79, 81a and 90, from 1809-14). These are deeply thoughtful readings, restrained and delicate, less volcanic than is often the case but with absolute technical precision and nuance. This is particularly evident in what the pianist terms the “enigmatic arpeggios” of the Tempest Sonata, which in his hands are more rippling than tempestuous and replete with contemplative pauses. The extraordinary trills of Op. 90 are rendered with high drama and expertly-judged balance between the hands, resulting in a breath-taking performance of this sonata, a precursor of the anguished emotionality that would receive fuller expression in Beethoven’s late works. The recording is rich and present with lovely depth, with a slight tendency to brightness in the upper registers. Listeners interested in these endlessly fascinating sonatas will find much of note in Jumpannen’s… Continue reading Get…

June 30, 2017
Instrumental
CD and Other Review

Review: Fantasies (Piotr Anderszewski)

This programme is built around around two substantial Fantasias for piano: the Mozart in C Minor K475, composed in 1785, and the early Fantasie in C by Schumann, written in 1836. Although only 50 years separate them, the two works fall distinctly into the Classical and Romantic periods of European music. They share a free form in common (in spite of the Schumann falling, sonata-like, into three movements), but their differences are fundamental. Mozart’s idea of the fantasy is to be free with keyboard decoration, and to roam through different keys and thematic ideas not dictated by a predetermined structure. Schumann’s idea of fantasy is an emotional one, ranging through those heightened states so beloved of the early Romantics, namely fiery passion and introspective melancholy. Mozart’s Piano Sonata No 14 is also in C Minor: a dark key for the composer (as for Beethoven), so there is an argument that a more Romantic approach is justified. In both works pianist Piotr Anderszewski gives us just that, to generally good effect. He is suitably stormy in the Sonata’s first movement, but I find the slow movement – for all his sensitivity – to be too introverted. He approaches… Continue reading Get…

June 23, 2017
Instrumental
CD and Other Review

Review: The Complete DG Recordings (Maurizio Pollini)

Unlike the lifelong artistic journey of some other pianists, that of Maurizio Pollini has remained remarkably consistent. Winning the 1960 International Chopin Competition, the young virtuoso’s approach right from the start was one of clarity, served by a technique of formidable strength and accuracy. Pollini made two recordings of Chopin for EMI, then took an extended break. In 1971 he signed with DG where he has remained to this day. Every one of his early LPs was an event, due to his phenomenal concentration and technical assurance: His Prokofiev Seventh Sonata and Stravinsky’s Three Pieces from Petrouchka, and his Chopin Études, remain gramophone classics. From then until the ultimate release in this box from 2014, he has not so much mellowed as matured. He continues to seek out a work’s structure and clarify its textures; he is revelatory in Schoenberg. The more important the music, the better. Bach’s Well Tempered Clavier (Book 1), Beethoven’s and Schubert’s late Piano Sonatas all receive this treatment. The slow movement of Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto (especially in the earlier performance under Karl Böhm) is neither personal introspection nor a lyrical serenade; it is a hymn. With Pollini you get none of the wry humour…

June 2, 2017