Reviews

GMCD 7329 Amy Beach (1867-1944) Piano Music, Vol. 2: The Turn of the Century - Kirsten Johnson, piano

International Record Review April 2009

Beach Piano Music, Volume 2. New

Children's Album, Op. 36. Two Compositions, Op. 54 - No. 1, Scottish Legend; No. 2, Gavotte fantastique. Variations on Balkan Themes, Op. 60. Four Eskimo Pieces, Op. 64. Moderato, Op. posth. Serenade (transcription of R. Strauss's 'Standchen').

Kirsten Johnson (piano).

Guild GMCD7329 (full price, 1 hour 1 minute). Website www.guildmusic.com Producer John Rushby-Smith. Engineer Jonathan Lane. Dates April 25th, 2007, February 26th, 2008.

Amy Beach, the most illustrious female composer to emerge from the USA, was a child prodigy from New Hampshire. Reportedly, at the age of one she was able to memorize 40 melodies and was competently writing waltzes by the age of four. She was largely self-taught and her compositions include a good deal of piano music alongside larger-scale orchestral and choral works. She was an active educationalist who toured extensively in Europe as well as America and was a fervent exponent of Classical and Romantic repertoire as well as her own piano works.

Kirsten Johnson comments in the booklet notes that the Variations on Balkan Themes of 1904 came in response to a collection of folk melodies brought back from missionaries to Bulgaria. Beach's prodigious capacities allowed her to score not only four of these from memory but to complete the entire work - which lasts close to half an hour - in little more than a week. She successfully encapsulated the melodies from which the variations are constructed within a highly accessible and tonal language that frequently draws sustenance from figurations owing much to Chopin and Liszt. Yet the music amounts to more than mere parody, for Beach is often capable of revealing a fresh and personal voice: poetic, stirring, virtuosic and highly chromatic. The Variations are superbly executed by Johnson, the pianist controlling the climactic flourishes so as to retain a focus on the all-important melodic thread. This is sensitive playing, the seventh variation (' Quasi Fantasia') enlivened by a delightfully crisp attack and the 'Marcia funerale' given a dark, brooding resonance. Before the reprise of the main theme there is a 'Cadenza', which holds more than a passing allusion to the extravagant pianistic exploits of Tchaikovsky and Liszt.

I enjoyed the five-movement Children's Album, a setting of dances ranging from the minuet to the polka, which (surprisingly uncommonly for pieces bearing such a description) can work nicely in a child's hands. The Serenade, a transcription of Richard Strauss's song Standchen, turns out to be an exceptionally faithful rendering of the original, the climax none the less acquiring a new and expansive treatment. This is a really effective work, made all the more sparkling by Johnson' s lightness of touch.

Beach's fascination for folk melodies continues in the 'Scottish Legend', Op. 54 No. 1, a charmingly wistful little piece that raises a smile (there again, I'm no more Scottish than Beach). The 'Gavotte fantastique', Op. 54 No. 2 has shades of Rachmaninov, while the work she called Eskimos brings together several Inuit melodies. This is a delightful collection, full of naive character and interest, especially 'The Returning Hunter' and 'With Dog-Teams', beautifully rendered by Johnson. There is much to enjoy in this album, although one is left with the feeling that while much of the material is rather good, it frequently falls somewhat short of 'great'. Beach's mastery of the instrument is abundantly clear, however, the more florid writing demonstrating her own extraordinary facility, and the voicing of the more lavishly constructed chords finely judged.

The composer cannot have anticipated a more attentive champion for her piano music than Kirsten Johnson, although in her notes I would have welcomed a little more of her personal insight into the musical mind of the composer. Mark Tanner

New Classics UK Tuesday June 02 2009

The prolific American composer and pianist Amy Beach was born as Amy Marcy Cheney into a distinguished New England family in 1867. A child prodigy, she was able to sing forty tunes accurately by the age of one, taught herself to read at three, and began composing simple waltzes age only four. She began formal piano lessons with her mother at the age of six, and a year later started giving public recitals, playing works by Handel, Beethoven, Chopin, and her own pieces. She made her professional debut in Boston in 1883 and shortly afterwards appeared as a soloist with the Boston Symphony Opera. Following her marriage in 1885 to Dr. Henry Harris Aubrey Beach she limited her performances to one public recital a year, and at her husband�s request, she devoted herself to composition. With the success of her Mass in E Flat Major in 1892, Amy Beach was recognised as one of America�s finest composers. After her husband died, she toured Europe as a pianist, playing her own compositions, before returning to America to use her status to further the careers of many young musicians. Kirsten Johnson follows up Volume 1 of her series of the complete works of Amy Beach with this album containing one of her most important works, Variations on Balkan Themes, as well as all of the piano pieces composed at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th. The brilliant Serenade shows her mastery of virtuoso piano writing and Eskimos displays her ability to create delightful vignettes. Moderato and Children�s Album are world premi�re recordings. Exquisite attention to detail, lovely tone colours and an amazing technique make Kirsten Johnson�s recording indispensable.

MusicWeb International Thursday May 28 2009

Another splendidly performed slice of Amy Beach ... Jonathan Woolf

Amy BEACH (1867-1944)
Variations on Balkan Themes Op.60 (1904) [28:30]
Scottish legend Op.54 No.1 (1903) [3:04]
Gavotte fantastique Op.54 No.2 (1903) [3:16]
Children�s Album Op.36 (1897) [9:15]
Transcription (1902) of Richard Strauss�s Serenade Op.17 No. 2 [3:54]
Eskimos, Four Characteristic Pieces Op.64 (1904) [11:04]
Moderato [1:42]
Kirsten Johnson (piano)
rec. St George�s, Bristol, April 2007 (Children�s Album Op.54 Nos.1 and 2, Moderato) and February 2008 (remainder)
Piano Music: Volume Two - The Turn of the Century
GUILD GMCD7329 [60:48]

This is the second volume in Kirsten Johnson�s admirable survey of the complete piano music of Amy Beach. The first release has already been reviewed and I see no reason whatsoever to modify my view that this is now shaping up to be a very fine, if contrastive cycle to that given by Joanne Polk, whose volumes I reviewed back in 2004.

This particular volume sports a �Turn of the Century� theme and it spans the 1897 Children�s Album to Eskimos and the Variations on Balkan Themes, two important works written in 1904. Moreover it does so with real refinement.

Eskimos is a clever and pictorial four movement work. In the first volume I found Johnson rather quicker than Polk and less inclined to rubati. Here things are rather different. Polk opens Arctic Night with a rather gaunter soundscape and a lot quicker, perhaps hinting at the seeping impressionism of the writing. Johnson however is fresher in The Returning Hunter and I do rather prefer the Guild recorded sound throughout; it�s more lush and cushioning than the Arabesque set. Honours are about even in Exiles. Here Johnson is again slower, and warmer, but Polk still manages to vest the con amore indication even at a more direct speed.

The other major work here is the Variations. Polk is a little more leisurely in the theme itself and in variations I, VII, VIII and the Marcia funerale, which is part of variation VIII. The work owes its origin to the Macedonian-Turkish conflict of the time, and is a series of variations on four themes with one of them making multiple reappearances. Johnson plays with real understanding of the more clement and the more astringent Lisztian elements embodied within it; she�s especially fine in variation III where she balances delicacy and declamation with real and rare acuteness.

Op.54 includes the Scottish legend and the Gavotte fantastique, the latter notable for the tighter rhythms Johnson finds than Polk and for the salon caprice she enjoys in the music making - a truly fine performance. The Children�s Album is delightful but very slight; predicated on dance tunes and rhythms and pleasingly generic. The second, a Gavotte, sounds suspiciously like the Op.54/2 Gavotte fantastique but the March is not too martial and its Music Hall elements also appeal.

With the lovely transcription of Richard Strauss�s Serenade and an undated and brief Moderato to complete the programme we have here another splendidly performed slice of Amy Beach. Both Polk and Johnson have profound strengths in this repertory and there will be adherents of both. I prefer Guild�s sound which may tip things; in any case I very much like Johnson�s playing. Jonathan Woolf

MusicWeb International Friday April 17 2009

Heart-warming, grace and character. A hidden gem ... Dan Morgan

REVIEW
RECORDING OF THE MONTH

Amy BEACH (1867-1944)
Piano Music Vol. 2: The Turn of the Century
Variations on Balkan Themes, Op.60 (1904) [28:30]
Children�s Album, Op.36 (1897)
No. 1: Minuet [2:21]
No. 2: Gavotte [1:49]
No. 3: Waltz [1:42]
No. 4: March [1:53]
No. 5: Polka [1:30]
Serenade (Transcription of R.Strauss�s St�ndchen) (1902) [3:54]
Scottish Legend, Op.54, No.1 (1903) [3:04]
Gavotte fantastique, Op.54, No.2 (1903) [3:16]
Eskimos, Op.64 (1907)
No. 1: Arctic Night [3:40]
No. 2: The Returning Hunter [1:12]
No. 3: Exiles [3:58]
No. 4: With Dog-teams [2:14]
Moderato (undated manuscript) [1:42]
Kirsten Johnson (piano)
rec. St George�s, Bristol, 25 April 2007 & 26 February 2008
GUILD GMCD7329 [60:48]

Amy Marcy Cheney Beach only swam into my ken recently, and I�m so glad she did. Like her compatriot and contemporary Charles Edward Ives she hailed from New England, where she made quite an impact as a child prodigy. She gave her first public performance at seven and, largely self-taught, went on to become both a performer and a composer of some distinction. Unfortunately for such an independent-minded and talented young woman her husband insisted she limit her performances to just one a year; the good news is that she was then able to devote more time to composition, becoming America�s first female composer of large-scale orchestral works, such as the Symphony No. 2 in E minor �Gaelic� (1896) (on Naxos, Bridge and Chandos).

Given that she was a piano prodigy it�s hardly surprising that much of Beach�s output was written for the instrument. Inexplicably, recordings of her works are still few and far between, so Guild must be congratulated for taking on this series with American-born pianist Kirsten Johnson. My colleague Jonathan Woolf welcomed the first volume of early works � see review � and now we have the second, covering the period 1897-1907. The first piece, Op. 60, is based on Balkan folk melodies Beach picked up from two missionaries to Bulgaria. An unusual source of inspiration, perhaps, but these tunes form the basis of a most rewarding set of variations. The opening Adagio malincolico is surely Chopinesque, but surely there�s a hint of something much more individual in the music�s harmonic shifts and twists.

Johnson, who has an interest in music from this part of the world � she has recorded two discs of Albanian music for Guild � see review 1 and review 2 � also provides very informative liner-notes. As I�ve said before, informed comments and analyses are most useful when it comes to less familiar repertoire; if only all recording companies took the same view. As for the pieces in Op. 60 � ranging from a minute to four-and-a-half in length � they cover a wide variety of moods. Variation II is particularly forthright, masculine even, in its weight and reach. Contrast that with the finely wrought Variation IV and you�ll soon appreciate the cut of this composer�s jib.

St George�s, Bristol, makes a fine venue for this recording; the piano sounds warm and detailed throughout, with no hint of distracting brightness or jangle. But what I admire most is Johnson�s natural, flowing style, which picks up so much colour and detail along the way. Those simple arpeggios and trills in Variation V are finely graded yet so full of feeling. If you�re looking for rough Bart�kian rusticity in these tunes you�re in the wrong place. It seems that Beach merely uses these melodies as springboards for a series of highly expressive inventions. The repeated rhythms and whirls of the Allegro all� Ongroise and the Marcia funerale may seem a little understated but Johnson handles this music with wonderful poise and restraint. They are miniatures, after all, and I�m delighted that she isn�t tempted to put them in large, ornate frames.

Variation VII is one of the loveliest pieces here, combining weight and delicacy with a certain rhapsodic quality. Even in the broader, more declamatory moments � Variation VIII for instance � Johnson�s sense of musical perspective ensures these pieces are scaled to perfection. The sombre Funeral March has a measured tread, the pianist very much in control of the music�s steady climb to a dynamic peak and its gentle descent to the valley below. Similarly, in the Cadenza Johnson finds a good balance between the music�s outward virtuosity and its inner voices. Just listen to the bell-like close to this section and the gentle but expansive reprise of the opening theme. This really is delectable music, superbly played.

In the great tradition of children�s pieces � Schumann and Debussy spring to mind � Beach�s Children�s Corner artfully combines an element of grown-up gravitas with child-like charm. Witness the earnest little Minuet, with its fleeting glimpses of something more wistful; Johnson phrasing the Gavotte with grace and a real feeling for the music�s delicate proportions. Ditto the music-box-like-tinkle of the Waltz, whose gentle rhythms are so naturally done. A March and Polka round off the suite, the latter combining crisp inner detail with plenty of outward sparkle.

Beach�s transcription of the Richard Strauss song St�ndchen is sensitively done, the flourishes capturing the swirl of the orchestral original, Johnson conveying the music�s surging character as well. Very accomplished writing indeed, played with orchestral amplitude. Scottish Legend is more considered, yet it retains all the ease and fluency of Beach�s earlier pieces. As for the Gavotte fantastique it fuses pointillist dabs with broader swathes of colour, yet it sounds wonderfully nimble in Johnson�s hands. The more programmatic Eskimos � based on Inuit melodies � is sparer of texture but no less atmospheric for that. The plain harmonies of Arctic Night give the piece a somewhat desolate feel; The Returning Hunter is much brighter and more rhythmic and Exiles has a restless, yearning air to it.

As with much we�ve heard thus far there is an economy of style in Eskimos, an emotional restraint, that is most impressive. It�s the kind of writing that can so easily underwhelm unless it�s played with utter conviction. No quibbles on that score, with Johnson despatching the animated final section with her customary elan. The disc ends with an exquisitely shaped little
Moderato, the perfect sign-off to an enchanting collection.

Like Cortez gazing down from that peak in Darien new listeners will surely marvel at the more compact, but no less revelatory, landscape unveiled here. Any niggles or no-nos? Absolutely none. This is heart-warming music played with rare grace and character; indeed, it could very well be one of my discs of the year. Dan Morgan

International Record Review April 2009

Beach Piano Music, Volume 2. New

Kirsten Johnson (piano).

Guild GMCD7329 (full price, 1 hour 1 minute). Website www.guildmusic.com Producer John Rushby-Smith. Engineer Jonathan Lane. Dates April 25th, 2007, February 26th, 2008.

Page revised Friday December 18 2009