Aaron Copland - Piano Works

Chronique

Programmed in descending order by significance and duration, the four piano works on this 2007 release from Orion Master Recordings give a representative sampling of Aaron Copland's keyboard music from the first half of his career. The Piano Sonata (1939-1941) is the most important piece of the disc, and its substantial length, earnest tone, and weighty material mark it as a serious effort, one of a small handful that stand out among Copland's piano compositions. This spiky and angular sonata may be understood as a direct descendant of the virtuosic but austere Piano Variations, though it also reflects Copland's Americana style in its long-breathed melodies, vigorous rhythms, and modal harmonies. The Passacaglia (1921-1922) is an early modernist work in its knotty counterpoint and astringent dissonances, though some of the piece's severity is moderated by reflective episodes of softer material. Four Piano Blues (1926-1948) is rather more in the spirit of the blues than technically derived from the style, and Copland's mix of popular-sounding material with impressionistic sonorities is quite evocative and charming. The Cat and the Mouse (1920), the concluding piece and also the shortest, is quick in tempo, changeable in mood, and cleverly suggestive of its subject. Pianist Robert Silverman is a champion of Copland's keyboard oeuvre and plays these selections with great sympathy and commitment, as well as with apparent ease in technique. Orion's sound is quite clear and pleasantly resonant, though the recording level is fairly hot and needs to be adjusted to a safe middle volume to avoid distortion.
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