Bortkievicz, Piano Music 2

Carl Vine is an Australian composer who has been active in a range of genres, from film music to public spectacle (he composed part of the music for the closing ceremonies of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics) to music informed by modernist concepts. The piano works here owe a debt, recognized in the notes by pianist Michael Kieran Harvey, to American composer Elliott Carter, and manipulations of rhythm and tempo play central structural roles in both the pair of piano sonatas and the profusion of miniatures recorded here.

John Cage - Complete Piano Music, Vols. 1-10 - Steffen Schleiermacher (2004) {18CD Set MDG 613 1731-2 rec 1997-2002}
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© 1997-2002, 2004 Musikproduktion Dabringhaus Und Grimm | MDG 613 1731-2
Classical / Contemporary Classical / Piano

Steffen Schleiermacher's monumental traversal of the complete piano music of John Cage will be essential for the collection of any fan of the composer's, unless he or she has already purchased the previously released ten volumes (a total of 18 discs) that are boxed together here and reissued in recognition of the composer's 100th anniversary in 2012. The 20-hour compilation is a testimony to Cage's hugely prolific output, and certainly constitutes one of the most significant collections of keyboard music of the 20th century. There could hardly be a more sympathetic and skillful interpreter of Cage's oeuvre than German pianist/composer Steffen Schleiermacher.

John Cage: Early Piano Music comes from Herbert Henck, an experienced hand with the work of Cage, having previously recorded Music for Piano, Music of Changes, and Sonatas and Interludes in addition to a mighty swath of first-tier twentieth-century literature for piano for various labels, most notably Wergo and ECM New Series. These are early works for standard, not prepared, piano, and some of these pieces will be as familiar to dyed-in-the-wool Cageans as "Happy Birthday." This puts the pressure on Henck to excel, and he does so spectacularly well here. The disc includes the two sets entitled Two Pieces for Piano, the piano version of The Seasons, Metamorphosis, In a Landscape, Ophelia, and the fragmentary Quest. The pieces date from 1935 to 1948, the same range covered by pianist Jeanne Kirstein in her pioneering 1967 survey of Cage's piano music for CBS Masterworks.

No one is more closely attuned to Poulenc's world than Pascal Roge, and his presence ensures the authenticity of feeling which runs through all these performances: his playing is both imaginative and inspiriting…The chamber music is hardly less appealing…The performances have a wonderful freshness and convey a real sense of delight.

Franz Xaver Scharwenka - Piano Music Vol.2 - Seta Tanyel (2002) {Hyperion-Helios CDH55132 rec 1992}
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© 1992, 2002 Collins Classics / Hyperion Records / Helios | CDH55132
Classical / Romantic / Early 20th Century / Piano

'Scharwenka could not have been better served. He deserves no less' (International Record Review). 'The recorded sound has all the freshness needed for this music' (Pianist). Many young pianists of my generation cut their teeth on one or another of Xaver Scharwenka's Polish Dances; he composed about thirty of them. The Op. 3, No. 1 was immensely popular, selling millions of copies and that's the one I learned to play when I was about ten or so. On this release are the two Polish Dances, Op. 29, and they are mazurkas in all but name. They are lively and set your toe tapping as played by Seta Tanyel.

Franz Xaver Scharwenka - Piano Music Vol.4 - Seta Tanyel (2003) {Hyperion-Helios CDH55134 rec 1995}
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© 1995, 2003 Collins Classics / Hyperion Records / Helios | CDH55134
Classical / Romantic / Early 20th Century / Piano

'… brimful with alert character and beauty whilst the two piano pieces are delightful in their raucous melodies … briliantly done by Tanyel' (Classical Net Review). It was brave and useful and laudable of Seta Tanyel and the now-defunct label Collins Classics to have embarked, in the 1990s, in a thorough exploration of the music of Xaver Scharwenka (1850-1924), and one must be grateful to Hyperion to have reissued almost all of it. The 4-volume traversal of his solo piano music doesn't embrace I think Scharwenka's complete piano output, but it is still very substantial. Add to that the three first piano concertos (apparently Collins didn't live long enough to record the Fourth, and the first is the one disc that Hyperion did not reissue, Piano Concerto 1, obviously because they already had another one in their catalog, Rubinstein: Piano Concerto No. 4; Scharwenka: Piano Concerto No. 1) and what I think was the complete chamber music. However, I didn't always feel that the results lived up to the project's promises.

Jean Sibelius - Piano Music Vol. 1 - Håvard Gimse (1999) {Naxos 8.553899}
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© 1999 Naxos / HNH International | 8.553899
Classical / Late Romantic / Early Modern / Piano

The Sonata and Impromptus are early and come from the year in which the first version of En Saga was composed. The Sonata has a genuine sense of forward movement and some of its ideas are appealing. The Op. 24 Pieces were written at various times between 1894 and 1903. The Norwegian pianist Håvard Gimse has consistent tonal beauty and unfailing musicianship. He is imaginative and has the kind of natural eloquence which allows the music to speak for itself yet still makes it sound fresh and unsentimental. This is distinguished playing and a strong recommendation at any price level.

Jean Sibelius - Piano Music Vol. 2 - Håvard Gimse (2000) {Naxos 8.554808}
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© 2000 Naxos / HNH International | 8.554808
Classical / Late Romantic / Early Modern / Piano

The Norwegian pianist Håvard Gimse here includes two important sets of the piano pieces, Opp. 34 and 40, and the 6 Finnish Folk Songs, fifth of which, Fratricide, is slightly Bartókian. Sibelius’s contemporary and countryman Selim Palmgren put it perfectly when he wrote that ‘even in what for him were alien regions, [Sibelius] moves with an unfailing responsiveness to tone colour’, and Gimse brings finesse and distinction to this repertoire. This and the companion disc are first recommendations.

Jean Sibelius - Piano Music Vol. 3 - Håvard Gimse (2001) {Naxos 8.554814}
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© 2001 Naxos / HNH International | 8.554814
Classical / Late Romantic / Early Modern / Piano

The Ten Pieces of Op. 58 date from 1909, the year of the String Quartet (Voces intimae). They are delightful and by no means just trivial. Each has its own sobriquet and shows real keyboard character. The final rather solemn Summer Song is memorable, as is the wistful mood of the first of the Two Rondinos, written two years later; the second sparkles most pianistically. The three Sonatinas, written together in the summer of 1912, are also full of charming ideas, giving the impressions of a composer relaxing in holiday mood. Håvard Gimse plays all this music freshly, and this Naxos disc more than bears out the promise of its companions.

Jean Sibelius - Piano Music Vol. 4 - Håvard Gimse (2003) {Naxos 8.555363}
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© 2003 Naxos / HNH International | 8.555363
Classical / Late Romantic / Early Modern / Piano

Gimse delivers very attractive readings that are warm, poetic and user-friendly. Actually, you won't find more affectionate performances on disc…. each piece is expertly constructed with engrossing melodies and rhythms that are not soon forgotten… With little exception, these pieces are among Sibelius's most enjoyable. They flow beautifully and express human urges, regret and triumph. Sibelius also injects a delightful improvisation into a few of the works… Gimse continues to offer excellent readings with an enticing blend of warmth and mystery…These are absolute gems that retain my attention after many hearings…For those who remain interested in Sibelius piano discs, Gimse's Naxos series is a fine choice. The price tag is low, and he offers affectionate interpretations in rich and clear sound.