Michael Endres - Arnold Bax: Complete Piano Sonatas (2011)
BAND/ARTIST: Michael Endres
- Title: Arnold Bax: Complete Piano Sonatas
- Year Of Release: 2011
- Label: Oehms Classics
- Genre: Classical Piano
- Quality: flac lossless (tracks)
- Total Time: 01:42:56
- Total Size: 320 mb
- WebSite: Album Preview
Tracklist
CD1
01. Piano Sonata No. 1 in F-Sharp Minor
02. Piano Sonata No. 2 in G Major
03. Piano Sonata No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor: I. Allegro moderato
04. Piano Sonata No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor: II. Lento moderato
05. Piano Sonata No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor: III. Allegro
CD2
01. Piano Sonata No. 4 in G Major: I. Allegro giusto
02. Piano Sonata No. 4 in G Major: II. Allegro quasi Andante
03. Piano Sonata No. 4 in G Major: III. Allegro
04. Piano Sonata in E-Flat Major: I. Allegretto moderato e feroce (Early piano Version of Symphony No. 1 in E-Flat Major)
05. Piano Sonata in E-Flat Major: II. Lento con molto espressione (Early piano Version of Symphony No. 1 in E-Flat Major)
06. Piano Sonata in E-Flat Major: III. Scherzo - Finale. Largamento (Early piano Version of Symphony No. 1 in E-Flat Major)
It's often difficult to pin down precisely the cultural and musical influences in Arnold Bax's music, especially in his highly diffuse Piano Sonatas (4) and the Sonata in E flat major (later orchestrated as the First Symphony), because the mix of his thematic materials is complicated by his unusual mingling of styles. Bax's intensely personal music often seems like a colorful crazy quilt of post-Romantic chromaticism derived from Wagner, folksy pastoralism à la Vaughan Williams, and Impressionist moods not too far removed from Debussy or Scriabin. Here and there in the fabric of these long, involved, and difficult keyboard works are the much discussed Celtic and Nordic themes that Bax used, though they are quite hard to find unless stated simply, in contrast to the general profusion of notes. Not that the complexity displayed here takes anything away from enjoying the music: musicologists who like detective work may relish digging through Bax's scores for this folk tune or that stylistic trait, but most listeners will find the music much more pleasurable when they let it wash over them, without struggling to identify particulars. The sweep, color, and energy of these evocative works are perhaps their strongest selling points, and pianist Michael Endres interprets them with a broad scope and propulsive movement. These pieces are little known and comparatively under-recorded, so Endres conscientiously elevates them with powerful emotions and sterling technique, and makes them feel like true masterpieces that deserve much greater attention. Oehms' sound is warm, resonant, and well-suited to Bax's lush harmonies and Endres' rich sonorities.
CD1
01. Piano Sonata No. 1 in F-Sharp Minor
02. Piano Sonata No. 2 in G Major
03. Piano Sonata No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor: I. Allegro moderato
04. Piano Sonata No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor: II. Lento moderato
05. Piano Sonata No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor: III. Allegro
CD2
01. Piano Sonata No. 4 in G Major: I. Allegro giusto
02. Piano Sonata No. 4 in G Major: II. Allegro quasi Andante
03. Piano Sonata No. 4 in G Major: III. Allegro
04. Piano Sonata in E-Flat Major: I. Allegretto moderato e feroce (Early piano Version of Symphony No. 1 in E-Flat Major)
05. Piano Sonata in E-Flat Major: II. Lento con molto espressione (Early piano Version of Symphony No. 1 in E-Flat Major)
06. Piano Sonata in E-Flat Major: III. Scherzo - Finale. Largamento (Early piano Version of Symphony No. 1 in E-Flat Major)
It's often difficult to pin down precisely the cultural and musical influences in Arnold Bax's music, especially in his highly diffuse Piano Sonatas (4) and the Sonata in E flat major (later orchestrated as the First Symphony), because the mix of his thematic materials is complicated by his unusual mingling of styles. Bax's intensely personal music often seems like a colorful crazy quilt of post-Romantic chromaticism derived from Wagner, folksy pastoralism à la Vaughan Williams, and Impressionist moods not too far removed from Debussy or Scriabin. Here and there in the fabric of these long, involved, and difficult keyboard works are the much discussed Celtic and Nordic themes that Bax used, though they are quite hard to find unless stated simply, in contrast to the general profusion of notes. Not that the complexity displayed here takes anything away from enjoying the music: musicologists who like detective work may relish digging through Bax's scores for this folk tune or that stylistic trait, but most listeners will find the music much more pleasurable when they let it wash over them, without struggling to identify particulars. The sweep, color, and energy of these evocative works are perhaps their strongest selling points, and pianist Michael Endres interprets them with a broad scope and propulsive movement. These pieces are little known and comparatively under-recorded, so Endres conscientiously elevates them with powerful emotions and sterling technique, and makes them feel like true masterpieces that deserve much greater attention. Oehms' sound is warm, resonant, and well-suited to Bax's lush harmonies and Endres' rich sonorities.
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