Classical Music

One of the foremost Spanish performers and composers of the last few decades, Pedro Iturralde is a significant innovator in the fusion of jazz and flamenco styles. This album contains the composer’s complete works for saxophone and piano. These versions were made specifically for this recording, and this is their premiere. This release features saxophonists Juan M. Jimenez and Claude Delangle, and pianist Esteban Ocana.

Classical Music

This is the first recording on the newly restored E. M. Skinner organ of Rockefeller Chapel at the University of Chicago, featuring several world premiere recordings (Tracks 8-13). This was written for and dedicated to Douglas Cleveland.

Performed by 2012 Avery Fisher Career Grant recipient Conrad Tao, who was also included on Forbes' 30 Under 30: The Youngest Stars In The Music Business list (the only classical musician on the list!), this album comprises of works for piano solo composed by internationally acclaimed American composer Gordon Getty.

Philip Glass has made an immense and stylistically wide-ranging contribution to piano repertoire. The Orphée Suite, a transcription of excerpts from the first opera in Glass’ Cocteau Trilogy, is one of his most distinctive piano pieces, blending virtuosity and melodic richness. In contrast, the hypnotic How Now is structurally influenced by Indian ragas and gamelan music, whilst Dreaming Awake contains one of the most powerful climaxes in all Glass’ works. Performed by Nicolas Horvath, a Scriabin Competition first prizewinner, this is the first release in the complete Glass solo piano edition which will include many premières.

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Reviews:

This disc is important because it demonstrates that Glass’s music works quite nicely alongside other composers of the past and alongside quite traditional approaches to performance generally.

– American Record Guide

Somehow, the objectivity of the sound of a piano suits the music of Philip Glass perfectly. Certainly that’s how it seems in Nicolas Horvath’s expert performances.

– International Piano

Bookended by two works of Lou Harrison, Karen Gottlieb's Music for Harp is a tribute to four mid-20th c. San Francisco Bay area new music composers: John Cage, Wayne Peterson, Dan Reiter and Mr. Harrison. Both individually and as a group, the compositions reflect elements from the cultures of Southeast Asia, India, "The Silk Road", and Europe. Ms. Gottlieb has performed with the SF Symphony for more than two decades as second harpist. In addition, Ms. Gottlieb is Principal Harpist for The SF Contemporary Music Players and performs regularly with other Northern California new music groups.

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) was born in the city of Bonn, but moved in 1792 to Vienna, where he spent the rest of his relatively short (he died aged 56) yet highly productive life. While best known, perhaps, for popular large-scale orchestral works such as his concertos and symphonies, he also composed string quartets and other chamber music, songs and, of course, a large amount of music for his 'own' instrument, the piano. In each genre, Beethoven was to some extent a path breaker, transforming the models he inherited from his predecessors or the approach taken by his contemporaries into something radically unique and bequeathing to posterity music that pushed the bounds of politely regulated Classicism towards the highly personal drama of Romanticism. When the young Beethoven arrived in Vienna, he quickly established himself as a virtuoso pianist-contemporaries had quite simply never heard anything like him before-and though deafness ended his career as a pianist, he continued to compose, ultimately publishing 32 piano sonatas (some early sonatas remained unpublished), several sets of piano variations, bagatelles and dances between 1793 and 1822, a representative selection of which are featured on Easy-Listening Piano Classics. Many of Beethoven's piano sonatas have names that describe their character, though not all of these originated with the composer. For instance, 'Path�tique' is an abbreviation of Beethoven's full title 'Grande sonate path�tique' (that is, 'passionate' rather than 'pitiful'); the 'Moonlight' was so named by a music critic who thought of moonlight shimmering upon Lake Lucerne when he heard the first movement (Beethoven simply gave it the sub-title Quasi una fantasia, 'Like a fantasy'); the 'Kurf�rstensonaten' are pre-Viennese sonatas dedicated to the Elector (Kurf�rst) of Cologne; 'The Tempest' comes from Anton Schindler's claim that the sonata was inspired by Shakespeare's play; 'Pastoral' was provided by one of Beethoven's publishers. In addition, Beethoven composed many shorter piano pieces, which he referred to as 'Kleinigkeiten (Small Things) or Bagatelles', though these should not be underestimated: while some are popular in style and suitable for amateur performers (such as the famous, and probably misnamed 'F�r Elise') others are highly characterful miniatures that one writer has described as 'lapidary, fragmentary, yes, even ironic'-true harbingers of Romanticism. Many of his dances (Minuets, L�ndler, Ecossaises and so forth) also combine charm and sophistication. Whether composing large-scale serious works for the enjoyment of connoisseurs or smaller popular pieces primarily designed to entertain, Beethoven was very interested in the piano, maintaining close contact with leading piano manufacturers in Vienna and London. The demands he made on both performers and the instrument itself contributed to the development of the modern concert grand. One observer wrote that when Beethoven played the piano 'the music of the man's soul passed over his countenance. He seems to feel the bold, the commanding, and the impetuous, more than what is soothing or gentle. The muscles of the face swell, and it's veins start out; the wild eye rolls doubly wild, the mouth quivers, and Beethoven looks like a wizard, overpowered by the demons whom he himself has called up.' Yet, whether seeking the sublime or appealing to the lighter sentiments, Beethoven's music always communicates 'From the heart... to the heart'.

"Bavouzet’s Haydn is unmatched in its zest and its wit. But it is also substantial, informed and deeply rewarding."

--The New York Times on Bavouzet's Haydn Sonatas cycle, 2022

The multi-award-winning pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet continues his great survey of Haydn's piano sonatas. This is Volume 3 in a series, of which The Times wrote: 'Who is the best composer for refreshing the spirit and making you laugh? Haydn, of course, especially when in the hands of a pianist like Bavouzet, another master of delight.' In the words of Bavouzet himself: 'Each volume of this ambitious, extended project will arrive over the years like a postcard, dispatched during my travels with scant respect for chronological considerations, but undertaken with the greatest passion for trying to convey as vividly as possible to twenty-first-century ears the boundless treasures of this sublime music.'

He also notes: 'We often forget how little information Haydn left us in the scores of his keyboard works: few indications of dynamics or of phrasing, and the briefest guides to tempo. This task is never anything other than absolutely fascinating, but for the performer it is also testing, and even risky. He must, even more than usual, create his own world, his own logic, left only to hope that, in the absence of tangible evidence, he will not distance himself too far from the composer's intentions, which remain forever unknowable.'

For the recording of this series, Bavouzet brought in a specially selected Yamaha piano which he feels gives the sort of tonal quality he is looking for, and once again this shows in a program which here presents the large-scale Sonata in C minor alongside sonatas of a lighter and sunnier character.

REVIEWS

If you’ve been collecting this series you won’t need any recommendation from me; if you haven’t been, you ought to start. Once again Jean-Efflam Bavouzet’s Haydn sweeps the field, at least on a modern instrument. He ornaments lavishly but always intelligently, and as before he omits codas or cadences before the second of the second-half repeats. This is such a smart and musically sensible thing to do that you can’t help but wonder if it was one of those “authentic” customs that was so obvious that no composer of the day bothered to notate or even so much as mention it.

The four sonatas on this disc have been arranged around the splendid work in C minor, one of Haydn’s greatest and most important keyboard pieces. No. 29 in E-flat major also is a grand work, with a profoundly moving central slow movement, while the two sonatas on the other side of No. 33 are lighter in character, but no less rich in invention. The entire sequence makes an ideal program for continuous listening, and Chandos’ sonics are terrific. Another great release in a standard-setting series.

--ClassicsToday.com (David Hurwitz)

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet takes risks. Haydn becomes chameleon like in ever changing variety of mood: now pausing, now bounding forward, now smoothly flowing, now trenchantly snappy. Though there’s a fundamental lyricism it’s tempered by bold assertions. These are highly emotive accounts which nevertheless also seamlessly project the drama of the music.

--MusicWeb International (Michael Greenhalgh)

Franois Couperin’s Concerts Royaux (1722) and Les Nations (1726) use open scoring, indicating that they could be performed by whatever instruments were at hand. + He later confessed that he himself preferred to perform them on two harpsichords. + This suggestion had to wait for these two CDs to be taken up in a recording (the second CD is being readied for future release). + Also presented are a number of his Pices de clavecin, also in rarely heard realizations for two harpsichords.

Classical Music

Classical Music

The great piano virtuoso Claudio Arrau (1903-91) joined a transcendental technique with the gift of intellectual analysis, making him a superb Liszt performer as well as one of the most admired 20th c. performers of classical and romantic repertoire. "His" Beethoven had no comparison for clarity of musical logic. Arrau's Schumann perfectly joined strong passionate intensity with a sense of rigor regarding musical structure. All these elements are present on this CD that gathers two live Swiss recitals, captured by Italian Swiss Radio, from 1959 and 1963 during the apex of his career.

This delightful new release from Stradivarius features keyboard works from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, one of the most virtuosic composers for keyboard that has ever lived. In many of Mozart’s first editions, the titles bear the French indication Sonatas pour le Clavecin ou Forte-piani. That is, the works were to be performed on either the harpsichord or the fortepiano. For this release, the rarer option has been chosen: the harpsichord. Basilio Timpanaro and Rossella Policardo make up The Harpsichord Duo. The duo has been engaged in the Italian concert scene for many years, earning public and critical notoriety.

The present CD is dedicated to one of the most beautiful new organs in Austria, the instrument from the Lenter workshop built in early 2010 in the parish church "Unserer lieben Frau Geburt" in Maishofen with 25 sounding stops. Thanks to it's soft, sustainable and very natural sound, this organ is ideally suited for the adequate presentation of organ music of all significant epochs; combined with the warm acoustics, this organ is inspiring to an exceptional degree for players and listeners alike.

Eric Montalbetti has had a long and fulfilling music career, though not necessarily in the field of composition. He is most known for his 18 year tenure as Artistic director of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. However, he began composing as a young child and has continued throughout his whole life. Montalbetti writes of this project: “Today, I am most happy to see my scores taking life thanks to wonderful conductors and soloists, and to develop new composition projects for the future.” In this music one can hear all of our most varied emotions- energy, mourning, hope, love, rage, and gratitude. Notable works on this release include “Trois etudes pares Kandinsky” for piano, and “Esprit tendre,” for oboe, which is a tribute to Helen and Elliott Carter. These works are performed by some of the best soloists in the current French music scene.

Classical Music

David Ashley White is one of the most popular composers in the Episcopal Church today. From anthems to hymns, this recording offers a variety of music and texts. The Choir of Palmer Church has long been associated with Mr. White's music, and gives the program a plush performance in a reverberant setting. "(White's) music reveals a distinctly Anglican ring and spirit: it would hardly sound out of place in an English cathedral. Yet it's Yankee heritage shines through as well... (This choir) is one of the finest, most professional-sounding church ensembles around." - American Record Guide

The music of Estonian organist-composer Süda (1883–1920) combines contrapuntal mastery with virtuosic command of the Romantic organ. Süda’s brief life and his perfectionism meant that his output – exclusively for the organ – remained small, but it is beautifully crafted and highly expressive.

Classical Music

Scott Miller's Tipping Point chronicles a long collaborative relationship between him and Minneapolis based new music ensemble, Zeitgeist. The members of Zeitgeist have regularly acted as a musical proving ground for Miller's explorations, particularly those combining acoustic instruments with interactive-electronic effects. From the opening measures of the title track, Miller's approach to integrating acoustic instruments into an electroacoustic environment is apparent. The tipping point Miller refers to may well be the edge at which we can no longer identify where the acoustic instruments end and the electronics begin. Funhouse dives immediately into this ambiguity, as snarling bass clarinet multiphonics mimic and later become absorbed into the carefully crafted noise world of the electronics. Pure Pleasure's percussive rhythms are manipulated timbrally as well as sent swirling around the stereo field in passages of spatialized virtuosity. Featuring soprano Carrie Henneman Shaw, Forth and Back's haunting minimalism suggests the slow evolution of a mind at work as it gains understanding over a puzzling paradigm: none other than time itself and our ability to transcend it through union with another. Mr. Miller is currently the President of the Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States (SEAMUS).

Reiko Füting’s features chamber works performed by members of NYC’s most celebrated contemporary ensembles, including the Int’l Contemporary Ensemble, Either/Or Ensemble, and the Mivos String Quartet. This collection of works illustrates Füting’s interest in the philosophical and artistic conception of memory, as well as the significant role past works of literature, music, and art play in shaping his compositional forms and musical material. Interspersed between the album’s longer works are vocal settings of haikus from Reiner Bonack. In addition to composing, Reiko Füting (b. 1970) is an avid performer who has appeared in Europe, Asia, and the US. Since 2000, Füting has been teaching composition and theory at Manhattan School of Music, where he serves as the chair of theory department.

Classical Music

***** (out of 5)
The first prerequisite of great Chopin playing is arguably beauty of tone, as well as refinement and variety… Lortie is a model Chopinist: eloquent but never sentimental, elegant without ever sounding effete, dramatic but never exaggerated, harmonically luminous, structurally immaculate – and surprising.

– BBC Music Magazine

"Lortie's Chopin playing has a wonderful, penetrating directness about it; there's not a trace of dreamy indulgence in any of the nocturnes, though all their decorative tracery shines out with a sharp-cut brilliance, and the impromptus dance and divert without a trace of self-consciousness” – The Guardian

‘Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her’ is a new CD featuring organ music with which to celebrate the Christmas season. + Works by Bach, Brahms and Barber stand alongside lesser-known works by composers including Alexandre Guilmant (1837-1911), Otto Malling (1848-1915) and Flor Peeters (1903-86), making for an interesting and diverse holiday listening experience. + Michael Hartmann (b. 1955), organist, lecturer and artistic director, is the featured performer on the Oehms Classics release.