Piano Music: March 2009 Archives

Hector Berlioz
(1803-1869)

Symphonie Fantastique (1830)
Transcription by Franz Liszt

Idil Biret, piano
Naxos 8.550725 55:54

Franz Liszt was a frequent transcriber and arranger of his own and other composers' music, and apart from Berlioz's best-known work, also did piano versions of several of the overtures and of Harold in Italy. Some see the recording of such arrangements as superfluous as there are any number of versions of the orchestral original available, but listening to a transcription can be useful in directing attention to a number of details that may be glossed over in an orchestral recording, and thus has considerable value. The Turkish pianist Idil Biret's Brahms series for Naxos is well-regarded, and her work on this CD is every bit as impressive.

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Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983)
   Tres Piezas, Op. 6
   Suite de Danzas Criollas, Op. 15
Carlos Guastavino (1912-2000)
   El Ceibo
   Gato
Constantino Gaito (1878-1945)
   Gato Correntino
Juan Jose Castro (1895-1968)
   Tangos
Juan Jose Ramos (1930-1995)
   Gato, La mayor
   Milonga Sureña
Julian Aguirre (1868-1924)
   Gato
Luis Gianneo (1867-1968)
   Sonatina
Mario Broeders (b.1931)
   Tangos a Los Maestros #23

Mirian Conti, piano
Albany TROY837 60min

This disc is a lovely collection of exciting and melodic short pieces, very easy on the ears. They are arranged in a good listening order and played with enchanting style. All are tonal, although Gianneo flirts a little with gentle polytonality. The two pieces by Ramos, the sprightly and catchy "Gato, La Major" and the slow and sensuous "Milonga Sureña" are especially seductive, and the pieces by Juan Jose Castro are edgy and pleasantly modern-sounding. The most famous composer on this disc, Alberto Ginastera, is represented with several selections: Three Pieces, Op. 6 composed in 1940, and the slightly more modern-sounding Suite de Danzas Criollas, Op. 15 from 1946.

[ Available on CD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan - ArkivMusic - CD Universe ]