Manhattan to Montmartre: Gershwin and Bernstein for Piano Duet and Duo
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Label: Somm
Cat No: SOMMCD0635
Format: CD
Number of Discs: 1
Genre: Chamber
Release Date: 18th June 2021
Contents
Works
West Side Story: Symphonic Dances (arr. John Musto)An American in Paris (arr. Julian Jacobson for piano 4 hands)
Rhapsody in Blue (arr. Henry Levine for piano 4 hands)
Rhapsody no.2 'Second Rhapsody' (arr. J Jacobson for piano 4 hands)
Artists
Julian Jacobson (piano)Mariko Brown (piano)
Works
West Side Story: Symphonic Dances (arr. John Musto)An American in Paris (arr. Julian Jacobson for piano 4 hands)
Rhapsody in Blue (arr. Henry Levine for piano 4 hands)
Rhapsody no.2 'Second Rhapsody' (arr. J Jacobson for piano 4 hands)
Artists
Julian Jacobson (piano)Mariko Brown (piano)
About
Receiving first recordings are Jacobson’s own joyfully virtuosic transcriptions for four hands/one piano of two Gershwin classics. Described by Gershwin as “the most modern music I’ve attempted”, An American in Paris takes four sailors from the epicentre of New York to the heart of Paris during its celebrated Années folles. It marked a significant development in orchestral technique for the composer, a quality accented by Jacobson’s exciting new arrangement.
Revelling in even greater sophistication, the Second Rhapsody was, claimed Gershwin, “the best thing I have written”. Distilling its crafted innovation, Jacobson’s articulate new transcription makes a persuasive case for a curiously undervalued masterpiece. Transcribed by Henry Levine, Gershwin’s ever-popular Rhapsody in Blue brilliantly distils the euphoric paean to New York and what Robert Matthew-Walker’s informative booklet notes describes as its “seamless outpouring of melodic invention”.
Matthew-Walker’s notes also reveal how the influence of a shared Russian heritage led to a new vibrancy in American 20th-century music as epitomised by Gershwin and Bernstein, two hugely influential masters of form and colour. John Musto’s acclaimed two-piano transcription of Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story captures all the drama, poetry, romance and wit of this ground-breaking score while sacrificing none of its blazing ardour and energy.
Jacobson and Brown’s previous SOMM release was a wide-ranging recital including Busoni’s Fantasia contrappuntistica and music by Satie, Debussy, Casella, Poulenc and Anthony Herschel-Hill (SOMMCD0178). Hailed by Fanfare as “a magnificent record… an urgent necessity for any music-lover who takes their interest in the art seriously”, MusicWeb International declared it “impressive and revealing music for two pianos. Rewarding for the adventuresome listener”.
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