Seamus Milne

Busoni was not only one of the greatest pianists of his age but also a composer and theorist of daunting intellect. His three idols were Bach, Mozart and Liszt and this disc presents two transcriptions, and in the Fantasia contrappuntistica a colossal re-imagining, each paying tribute to the past while reflecting Busoni’s genius as both creator and re-creator.

Hamish Milne makes a welcome return to the Romantic Piano Concerto series with two recherché delights from the nineteenth century.
Józef, ‘the other Wieniawski’ is the brother of the more famous violinist, Henryk. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire and had a wide-ranging and successful performing and composing career. His highly attractive Piano Concerto in G minor is in the mould of those by Chopin and Liszt, with the piano very much in the foreground. The Rondo finale demands a spectacular display of technique, living proof of Wieniawski’s own brand of virtuosity.

Fifteen years later, but well worth the wait, Joel Haynes is back with his third album 'The Return' on Cellar Music. The Toronto-based drummer laid down the album in Vancouver with an all-star band including Seamus Blake on saxophone, Neil Swainson on bass, and Tilden Webb on piano. Fine original compositions are juxtaposed by some killer covers including 'Tomorrow Never Knows' by The Beatles.

Over the ten years that the Romantic Piano Concerto has been running one of the projects most often requested by the many fans of the series has been a recording of the complete Lyapunov works for piano and orchestra. Well finally here it is!

Hyperion's series of recordings of Bach transcriptions continues with this superlative release by Hamish Milne. While earlier volumes had featured the transcriptions of Busoni, Feinberg, Friedman, and Grainger, this volume features transcriptions by Russian composers. And, as with earlier volumes, the transcriptions reveal more about the transcriber than they do about the composer. In the case of Siloti's transcriptions of the Prelude in B minor and the Air from the Third Orchestral Suite, we find a transcriber of strength and delicacy, of massive sonorities and ethereal melodies.

Anatoly Alexandrov (1888-1982) - not to be confused with several other Russian composers with the name Alexandrov - was a Russian composer and pianist who wrote music in virtually all genres but mainly focused on the keyboard. The style is reminiscent of late Scriabin and, perhaps more than anything else, Medtner. Now, Alexandrov's music isn't, in the end, quite on the level of either of those composers, but this survey by Hamish Milne proves that Alexandrov is certainly a worthwhile encounter.

Brad Turner and Seamus Blake reunite nearly 20 years later and the results are breathtaking. Sometimes trying to recreate something can be unsuccessful, and the results can be disappointing. But it's no surprise that ''Jump Up'' is a huge success. The album features 9 new all original compositions by Brad and he penned some beauties. There is a palpable excitement and electricity in these tracks, clearly demonstrating that Seamus and Brad are both relishing sharing the front line again.

These two English piano concertos in the grand romantic tradition were written at almost the same time (Holbrooke 1908, Wood 1909) and were undoubtedly inspired by the great concertos of the previous few decades such as those of Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninov.