Nimbus
Clara Rodriguez Plays The Piano Music Of Federico Ruiz
$20.99
Details
- Composer
- RUIZ, FEDERICO
- Artist
- Clara Rodriguez
- Format
- CD
- Label
- Nimbus
- Released
- Apr 01, 2012
- Catalog #
- NI6179
- UPC
- 710357617928
About
Performances alive with vitality in well defined recordings.
Clara Rodríguez has been recognised for some time now as an ideal pianist to perform missionary work on behalf of Latin American composers. She has performed the works of Venezuelan Federico Ruiz with fidelity and has earned the dedication of some of them; Tropical Triptych and Nocturne were written for her.
The music in this recital reflects an interesting range of influences, dance patterns and stylistic affinities. Merengue, composed in 1994, establishes Ruiz’s penchant for rhythmic vitality and romantic refinement. There is a long cycle of small character pieces called Pieces for children under 100 years of age, written between 1982 and 1994. Droll as the title is, it wouldn’t matter much were the music dull. That, assuredly, is not the case. There are hints of a Latin Chopin in the opening Prelude, whilst he summons up the spirit of Chaplin ( Charlot) in the second piece of the set. This turns out to be a touch of Ragtime, so it’s not properly Chaplin that’s being evoked, it seems to me, more the piano accompaniment provided in cinemas and movie theatres to some scenes from his films. Our Lady of Sorrow is properly wistful whilst there’s great charm to Magic Dream. It’s important that he establishes mood quickly in these pieces as they are all so short – none is longer than three minutes. The Dictator rides a moped is amusing for its out of control sequence; Dictators clearly can’t ride them. Debussy haunts the Encounter of Antonio and Florentino and there’s a laconic Cha cha cha further on in the sequence. Altogether this is a lively, imaginative and witty set.
The Three Venezuelan Waltzes, composed during the 1980s, are disparate but bound together by their origin in the waltz. The Nocturne is somewhat different, being rather chromatic and obviously effusive, and it’s played by its dedicatee with aplomb. Very different again, indeed the work of a much earlier Ruiz, is the Micro-Suite of 1971. The five succinct movements, more succinct indeed than the children’s pieces, are decidedly Webern-like, and suggest the journey Ruiz has undertaken from this rather formalised use of twelve-tone, to his later absorption of local models and rhythms.
We return, finally, to a more recent Ruiz in the shape of Tropical Triptych composed in 1993. When Ruiz conjoins rhythmic brio with lyrical intensity, as here, the results are idiomatic and exciting. His propensity for Ragtime, and a bit of Gottschalk, Ginastera and Milhaud certainly doesn’t hinder him either.
To these qualities and affiliations one can add that he writes, so it seems, with considerable pianistic affinity. The performances manage to get across this vitality in well defined recordings.
-- Jonathan Woolf, MusicWeb International
Clara Rodríguez has been recognised for some time now as an ideal pianist to perform missionary work on behalf of Latin American composers. She has performed the works of Venezuelan Federico Ruiz with fidelity and has earned the dedication of some of them; Tropical Triptych and Nocturne were written for her.
The music in this recital reflects an interesting range of influences, dance patterns and stylistic affinities. Merengue, composed in 1994, establishes Ruiz’s penchant for rhythmic vitality and romantic refinement. There is a long cycle of small character pieces called Pieces for children under 100 years of age, written between 1982 and 1994. Droll as the title is, it wouldn’t matter much were the music dull. That, assuredly, is not the case. There are hints of a Latin Chopin in the opening Prelude, whilst he summons up the spirit of Chaplin ( Charlot) in the second piece of the set. This turns out to be a touch of Ragtime, so it’s not properly Chaplin that’s being evoked, it seems to me, more the piano accompaniment provided in cinemas and movie theatres to some scenes from his films. Our Lady of Sorrow is properly wistful whilst there’s great charm to Magic Dream. It’s important that he establishes mood quickly in these pieces as they are all so short – none is longer than three minutes. The Dictator rides a moped is amusing for its out of control sequence; Dictators clearly can’t ride them. Debussy haunts the Encounter of Antonio and Florentino and there’s a laconic Cha cha cha further on in the sequence. Altogether this is a lively, imaginative and witty set.
The Three Venezuelan Waltzes, composed during the 1980s, are disparate but bound together by their origin in the waltz. The Nocturne is somewhat different, being rather chromatic and obviously effusive, and it’s played by its dedicatee with aplomb. Very different again, indeed the work of a much earlier Ruiz, is the Micro-Suite of 1971. The five succinct movements, more succinct indeed than the children’s pieces, are decidedly Webern-like, and suggest the journey Ruiz has undertaken from this rather formalised use of twelve-tone, to his later absorption of local models and rhythms.
We return, finally, to a more recent Ruiz in the shape of Tropical Triptych composed in 1993. When Ruiz conjoins rhythmic brio with lyrical intensity, as here, the results are idiomatic and exciting. His propensity for Ragtime, and a bit of Gottschalk, Ginastera and Milhaud certainly doesn’t hinder him either.
To these qualities and affiliations one can add that he writes, so it seems, with considerable pianistic affinity. The performances manage to get across this vitality in well defined recordings.
-- Jonathan Woolf, MusicWeb International
Tracklist 27 tracks
-
1 Merengue 03:50
- Track
- 1
- Title
- Merengue
- Duration
- 03:50
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
2 I. Preludio 00:50
- Track
- 2
- Title
- I. Preludio
- Duration
- 00:50
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
3 II. Charlot 01:41
- Track
- 3
- Title
- II. Charlot
- Duration
- 01:41
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
4 III. Virgen de la Soledad 01:33
- Track
- 4
- Title
- III. Virgen de la Soledad
- Duration
- 01:33
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
5 IV. Secuencia cinematografica 01:09
- Track
- 5
- Title
- IV. Secuencia cinematografica
- Duration
- 01:09
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
6 V. Sueno magico 01:12
- Track
- 6
- Title
- V. Sueno magico
- Duration
- 01:12
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
7 VI. Vals para Dulcinea 00:52
- Track
- 7
- Title
- VI. Vals para Dulcinea
- Duration
- 00:52
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
8 VII. Paseo de dictador en motoneta 01:11
- Track
- 8
- Title
- VII. Paseo de dictador en motoneta
- Duration
- 01:11
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
9 VIII. Un amanecer en Santa Maria 01:58
- Track
- 9
- Title
- VIII. Un amanecer en Santa Maria
- Duration
- 01:58
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
10 IX. Encuentro de Antonio y Florentino 02:53
- Track
- 10
- Title
- IX. Encuentro de Antonio y Florentino
- Duration
- 02:53
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
11 X. Registro 01:05
- Track
- 11
- Title
- X. Registro
- Duration
- 01:05
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
12 XI. La peruanita 01:22
- Track
- 12
- Title
- XI. La peruanita
- Duration
- 01:22
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
13 XII. Valles del Tuy 02:14
- Track
- 13
- Title
- XII. Valles del Tuy
- Duration
- 02:14
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
14 XIII. Un chachacha para Madalit 02:06
- Track
- 14
- Title
- XIII. Un chachacha para Madalit
- Duration
- 02:06
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
15 XIV. Joropo-estribillo 02:08
- Track
- 15
- Title
- XIV. Joropo-estribillo
- Duration
- 02:08
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
16 No. 1. Carmen Rosa 02:08
- Track
- 16
- Title
- No. 1. Carmen Rosa
- Duration
- 02:08
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
17 No. 2. Tu presencia 02:28
- Track
- 17
- Title
- No. 2. Tu presencia
- Duration
- 02:28
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
18 No. 3. Eloisa 02:47
- Track
- 18
- Title
- No. 3. Eloisa
- Duration
- 02:47
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
19 Nocturne 08:41
- Track
- 19
- Title
- Nocturne
- Duration
- 08:41
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
20 I. Preludio 00:43
- Track
- 20
- Title
- I. Preludio
- Duration
- 00:43
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
21 II. Invencion 00:50
- Track
- 21
- Title
- II. Invencion
- Duration
- 00:50
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
22 III. Passacaglia 01:18
- Track
- 22
- Title
- III. Passacaglia
- Duration
- 01:18
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
23 IV. Scherzo 00:33
- Track
- 23
- Title
- IV. Scherzo
- Duration
- 00:33
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
24 V. Final 01:07
- Track
- 24
- Title
- V. Final
- Duration
- 01:07
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
25 I. Moderato, molto espressivo 05:41
- Track
- 25
- Title
- I. Moderato, molto espressivo
- Duration
- 05:41
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
26 II. Andante 05:12
- Track
- 26
- Title
- II. Andante
- Duration
- 05:12
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz
- Performer
- Clara Rodriguez
-
27 III. Allegro vivo 06:32
- Track
- 27
- Title
- III. Allegro vivo
- Duration
- 06:32
- Composer
- Federico Ruiz