Sony Masterworks
Music For You - Skempton: Piano Works / John Tilbury
$17.99
Only 3 left
Details
- Artist
- Skempton, Tilbury
- Format
- CD
- Label
- Sony Masterworks
- Released
- Apr 30, 2012
- Catalog #
- SONY 89954
- UPC
- 696998995420
About
Simplicity is the key to these chorale-like miniatures and musical landscapes, by turns playful and solemn. This disc is a hymn to life itself.
This disc, reissued in Sony's beautifully packaged 'Music for You' series, highlights the contemporary British composer Howard Skempton at his best and most idiomatic. While his creative peak, to date, is perhaps represented by his orchestral masterpiece Lento, these miniatures are probably more representative of his body of work as a whole and share with Lento a profound ability to communicate with their audience. Simplicity is the key here, and the composer's own booklet notes, while bearing little resemblance to the usual track by track commentary, divide the pieces into two types - chorale-like or landscapes. In one sense, I can see the logic at work here but the music encompasses so much more than that stark description could ever do.
The quintessential pianist for experimental British music of this vintage, John Tilbury, not only finds within himself performances that commune completely with works he is playing, but also contributes a second, highly perceptive booklet note. The composers he chooses to compare are American (Cage and Feldman) but I would add that anyone fond of the piano miniatures by the likes of Sculthorpe or Pärt will find much to please them here. Beyond that, I can, predictably I suppose, hear the ghost of Satie, by turns playful and solemn, at work as well.
This is a recital disc first and foremost and it would be wrong to overanalyse and isolate too many individual elements, some of which might be diminished by separation but certain tracks/pieces I cannot let pass me by without particular mention. The opening tribute to Skempton's teacher Cornelius Cardew is a friendly, unpretentious homage, whereas the extraordinary music, collected here as Images, written for a TV series about photography, places Skempton in the wider context of the English tradition with its incorporation of The Cockfight (a stunningly beautiful realisation) and, not for the first time with this composer, a version of The Keel Row. The Durham Strike reminds us that Skempton is not, unlike many of his contemporaries and, indeed, predecessors, detached from the real world but succeeds in its attempts at the transmutation of the daily grind into something more noble. These ears hear everything from Irish caoines to French impressionism in five and a half minutes of true genius.
Most of these pieces were written between 1970 and 1981, although they are not individually dated, and now it is surely time that Skempton gains the recognition he so richly deserves. Like the often very similarly inspired, though more "rock" aware music of Brian Eno's younger brother Roger, it positively bleeds artistic integrity and is what really ought to be playing on Classic FM's "chillout" sessions, rather than the pseudo-filmic ephemera of Einaudi et al. Absolutely essential, it reminds me of so many things I love in music, from the vaults of the ECM back catalogue to the contents of Singing Together I learnt as a child thirty years ago, this disc is a hymn to life itself.
-- Neil Horner, MusicWeb International
This disc, reissued in Sony's beautifully packaged 'Music for You' series, highlights the contemporary British composer Howard Skempton at his best and most idiomatic. While his creative peak, to date, is perhaps represented by his orchestral masterpiece Lento, these miniatures are probably more representative of his body of work as a whole and share with Lento a profound ability to communicate with their audience. Simplicity is the key here, and the composer's own booklet notes, while bearing little resemblance to the usual track by track commentary, divide the pieces into two types - chorale-like or landscapes. In one sense, I can see the logic at work here but the music encompasses so much more than that stark description could ever do.
The quintessential pianist for experimental British music of this vintage, John Tilbury, not only finds within himself performances that commune completely with works he is playing, but also contributes a second, highly perceptive booklet note. The composers he chooses to compare are American (Cage and Feldman) but I would add that anyone fond of the piano miniatures by the likes of Sculthorpe or Pärt will find much to please them here. Beyond that, I can, predictably I suppose, hear the ghost of Satie, by turns playful and solemn, at work as well.
This is a recital disc first and foremost and it would be wrong to overanalyse and isolate too many individual elements, some of which might be diminished by separation but certain tracks/pieces I cannot let pass me by without particular mention. The opening tribute to Skempton's teacher Cornelius Cardew is a friendly, unpretentious homage, whereas the extraordinary music, collected here as Images, written for a TV series about photography, places Skempton in the wider context of the English tradition with its incorporation of The Cockfight (a stunningly beautiful realisation) and, not for the first time with this composer, a version of The Keel Row. The Durham Strike reminds us that Skempton is not, unlike many of his contemporaries and, indeed, predecessors, detached from the real world but succeeds in its attempts at the transmutation of the daily grind into something more noble. These ears hear everything from Irish caoines to French impressionism in five and a half minutes of true genius.
Most of these pieces were written between 1970 and 1981, although they are not individually dated, and now it is surely time that Skempton gains the recognition he so richly deserves. Like the often very similarly inspired, though more "rock" aware music of Brian Eno's younger brother Roger, it positively bleeds artistic integrity and is what really ought to be playing on Classic FM's "chillout" sessions, rather than the pseudo-filmic ephemera of Einaudi et al. Absolutely essential, it reminds me of so many things I love in music, from the vaults of the ECM back catalogue to the contents of Singing Together I learnt as a child thirty years ago, this disc is a hymn to life itself.
-- Neil Horner, MusicWeb International
Tracklist 44 tracks
-
1 Well, Well Cornelius 03:03
- Track
- 1
- Title
- Well, Well Cornelius
- Duration
- 03:03
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
2 June '77 01:41
- Track
- 2
- Title
- June '77
- Duration
- 01:41
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
3 Trace 00:57
- Track
- 3
- Title
- Trace
- Duration
- 00:57
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
4 Air 01:07
- Track
- 4
- Title
- Air
- Duration
- 01:07
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
5 Saltaire Melody 00:58
- Track
- 5
- Title
- Saltaire Melody
- Duration
- 00:58
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
6 Senza licenza 02:17
- Track
- 6
- Title
- Senza licenza
- Duration
- 02:17
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
7 Invention 00:31
- Track
- 7
- Title
- Invention
- Duration
- 00:31
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
8 Passing Fancy 00:52
- Track
- 8
- Title
- Passing Fancy
- Duration
- 00:52
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
9 Sweet Chariot 01:13
- Track
- 9
- Title
- Sweet Chariot
- Duration
- 01:13
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
10 Chorale 01:18
- Track
- 10
- Title
- Chorale
- Duration
- 01:18
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
11 First Prelude 01:31
- Track
- 11
- Title
- First Prelude
- Duration
- 01:31
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
12 Piano Piece (1969) 01:31
- Track
- 12
- Title
- Piano Piece (1969)
- Duration
- 01:31
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
13 Rumba 01:14
- Track
- 13
- Title
- Rumba
- Duration
- 01:14
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
14 Toccata 01:46
- Track
- 14
- Title
- Toccata
- Duration
- 01:46
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
15 Quavers 5 01:23
- Track
- 15
- Title
- Quavers 5
- Duration
- 01:23
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
16 A Roma 01:50
- Track
- 16
- Title
- A Roma
- Duration
- 01:50
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
17 Of Late 00:40
- Track
- 17
- Title
- Of Late
- Duration
- 00:40
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
18 Campanella 3 01:03
- Track
- 18
- Title
- Campanella 3
- Duration
- 01:03
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
19 Campanella 01:36
- Track
- 19
- Title
- Campanella
- Duration
- 01:36
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
20 Swedish Caprice 01:18
- Track
- 20
- Title
- Swedish Caprice
- Duration
- 01:18
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
21 Quavers 3 01:54
- Track
- 21
- Title
- Quavers 3
- Duration
- 01:54
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
22 Una barcarola eccentrica 00:40
- Track
- 22
- Title
- Una barcarola eccentrica
- Duration
- 00:40
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
23 Prelude No. 1 01:45
- Track
- 23
- Title
- Prelude No. 1
- Duration
- 01:45
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
24 Interlude No. 1 01:12
- Track
- 24
- Title
- Interlude No. 1
- Duration
- 01:12
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
25 Prelude No. 2 01:53
- Track
- 25
- Title
- Prelude No. 2
- Duration
- 01:53
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
26 Interlude No. 2 00:53
- Track
- 26
- Title
- Interlude No. 2
- Duration
- 00:53
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
27 Prelude No. 5 01:57
- Track
- 27
- Title
- Prelude No. 5
- Duration
- 01:57
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
28 Interlude No. 3 01:15
- Track
- 28
- Title
- Interlude No. 3
- Duration
- 01:15
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
29 The Cockfight: A Traditional Song 01:25
- Track
- 29
- Title
- The Cockfight: A Traditional Song
- Duration
- 01:25
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
30 Prelude No. 3 01:55
- Track
- 30
- Title
- Prelude No. 3
- Duration
- 01:55
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
31 Interlude No. 4 01:29
- Track
- 31
- Title
- Interlude No. 4
- Duration
- 01:29
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
32 Prelude No. 6 02:01
- Track
- 32
- Title
- Prelude No. 6
- Duration
- 02:01
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
33 Interlude No. 5 00:56
- Track
- 33
- Title
- Interlude No. 5
- Duration
- 00:56
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
34 Song No. 2 01:39
- Track
- 34
- Title
- Song No. 2
- Duration
- 01:39
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
35 Prelude No. 4 01:43
- Track
- 35
- Title
- Prelude No. 4
- Duration
- 01:43
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
36 Interlude No. 7 00:23
- Track
- 36
- Title
- Interlude No. 7
- Duration
- 00:23
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
37 Prelude No. 7 01:49
- Track
- 37
- Title
- Prelude No. 7
- Duration
- 01:49
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
38 Interlude No. 8 00:57
- Track
- 38
- Title
- Interlude No. 8
- Duration
- 00:57
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
39 Prelude No. 8 02:11
- Track
- 39
- Title
- Prelude No. 8
- Duration
- 02:11
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
40 Interlude No. 6 00:29
- Track
- 40
- Title
- Interlude No. 6
- Duration
- 00:29
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
41 Variations 03:11
- Track
- 41
- Title
- Variations
- Duration
- 03:11
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
42 Postlude: The Keel Row 00:46
- Track
- 42
- Title
- Postlude: The Keel Row
- Duration
- 00:46
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
43 The Durham Strike 05:21
- Track
- 43
- Title
- The Durham Strike
- Duration
- 05:21
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury
-
44 Postlude 01:45
- Track
- 44
- Title
- Postlude
- Duration
- 01:45
- Composer
- Howard Skempton
- Performer
- John Tilbury