Paul Dukas

The second Piano Classics Explorer 10-CD set offers a wide range of rarely heard French piano repertoire.
The Piano Classics Explorer series offers valuable and attractively themed collections from its catalogue. Piano Classics was the first label to exclusively devote itself to piano music. Since its founding in 2010 it has released countless extraordinary recordings, presenting many repertoire rarities and amazing young pianists. The press has always been enthusiastic about the label’s releases and has showered many 5-star and Editor’s Choices on them.

The Glière is the most ambitious work here, running for nearly 23 minutes, almost a record length for a horn concerto. It is very florid and romantic—its unlikely model is Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto, to which it comes nearest in the finale which is a lively Russian dance. Although some of the material is ingenuous, notably the march rhythm of the first movement, it is quite a jolly piece and has much in common with the Richard Strauss concertos. Otherwise the best known work is the Dukas Villanelle which Dennis Brain liked to play, and which is attractively diverse in mood and style, although essentially a miniature.

The second Piano Classics Explorer 10-CD set offers a wide range of rarely heard French piano repertoire.
The Piano Classics Explorer series offers valuable and attractively themed collections from its catalogue. Piano Classics was the first label to exclusively devote itself to piano music. Since its founding in 2010 it has released countless extraordinary recordings, presenting many repertoire rarities and amazing young pianists. The press has always been enthusiastic about the label’s releases and has showered many 5-star and Editor’s Choices on them.

Spices! Perfumes! Toxins! - Dukas, Dorman - Aron Leijendeckers & Dan Townsend (2018) {ARS ARS38234 Official Digital Download}
FLAC (tracks) - 16bit/44kHz - Official Digital Download (prestoclassical.co.uk) -> 170 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 94 Mb
Full Artwork (jpg+pdf) -> 6 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2018 Ars Produktion | ARS3823
Classical / Early 20th Century / 21th Century / Modern Classical / Percussion / Orchestral

Works for percussion and orchestra can be timbral gimmickry from the workshops of compositional Avantgardists; or they are rhythmically inspired by the nature of the solo instrument. However, they can also be full of melody and feeling. This is true of Avner Dormans Spices, Perfumes, Toxins! a concerto for two percussionists and orchestra. Instead of hailing from a theoretical ivory tower, this work adheres to the basic form of the solo concerto. In spite of this, every note speaks the language of modernism while steering clear of typically engineered moments.