Volume 27 Issue 8 | July 1 - September 20, 2022

play the “Heroic” A flat Major Op.53, which I
fell in love with). Schaaf plays it with joy and
panache and the middle ostinato is particularly
menacing. The Andante Spianato is
flowing gracefully in sustained piano and the
following Grand Polonaise erupts in fortissimo
as a magnificent contrast. This is highly
accomplished, technically brilliant, enthusiastic
piano playing and a recording to match.
Janos Gardonyi
Slavic Heart
Anna Petrova
Solo Musica SM383 (anna-petrova.com)
! Classical music
is rarely political
anymore, although
extra-musical
narratives can be
unpacked from
much of Western
Art Music and be
applied both for the
purposes of historical contextualizing and in
an effort to make sense of today’s world. And
while making sense of today’s world may
seem like a yeoman’s task as of late, classical
music listeners should not avoid listening to
and reflecting on the music of the many great
Russian composers of yesteryear whose gifts
to the world were many indeed.
It would be a shame to make the legacy
of such 20th century Russian composers
as Sergei Rachmaninoff, Sergei Prokofiev
and Alexander Scriabin yet another casualty
in the ongoing and horrific war in Ukraine.
Recorded prior to the Russian invasion
of February 2022, Hungarian pianist
Anna Petrova, a highly feted pianist and
Doctor of Musical Arts who is on faculty
at the University of Louisville, takes on
the challenge of interpreting this fine
music with aplomb on her Solo Musica
release, Slavic Heart.
Capturing the music of the three aforementioned
composers, along with the work
of Bulgarian Pancho Vladigerov, this excellent
new recording mines what must have
been a creatively fertile geographic area and
50-year time period (1892 to 1942) to bring
these haunting melodies back into focus. I
can only imagine that solo pianists love (and
perhaps dread?) the inherent challenges that
the canon of these four composers presents.
But with marvellous technique, a deft touch
on the piano and an ability to coax new
insights from these canonic pieces, Petrova
makes it clear on Slavic Heart that she is up
to the task.
Andrew Scott
Fables – Maurice Ravel; Barbara Assiginaak
Philip Chiu
ATMA ACD2 2843 (atmaclassique.com/en)
! Indigenous
issues are an
important topic
in Canada today
and Canadian
pianist Philip Chiu
addresses their
significance on this
ATMA recording by
pairing music by
Maurice Ravel with that of Anishinaabekwe
composer Barbara Assiginaak. Inaugural
winner of the Mécénat Musica Prix Goyer,
Chiu has made a name for himself as both
soloist and chamber musician. His musical
partners have included Emmanuel Pahud and
Raphael Wallfisch.
The disc opens with the Ravel String
Quartet in F, composed in 1903. A truly
beautiful work, the quartet is considered by
many to be among the finest in the repertoire
and this transcription by Lucien Gurban
(and further adapted by Chiu) is exemplary.
Indeed, the listener could easily be deceived
into thinking it was originally scored for solo
piano. Throughout, Chiu does it full justice,
his approach as poised and elegant as the
music itself. The frenetic finale is a true tour
de force, with the young artist demonstrating
a formidable technique.
Assiginaak’s piece Mnidoonskaa (A
Multitude of Insects), composed in 2021, is a
perfect companion. Inspired by Indigenous
teachings, the work – the first of two collections
of short pieces – is in five movements
and pays homage to those tiny creatures
that are often unseen or simply ignored.
Movements such as Water Striders and
Mosquito Larvae are highly atmospheric –
true examples of 21st-century impressionism
– while the brief third movement One Certain
Mosquito Sings, is hauntingly lyrical.
Concluding the disc is Ravel’s familiar
Ma mère L’Oye (Mother Goose) as arranged
for piano by Jacques Charlot. Here, Chiu
evokes a true fantasy world, his playing
refined and sensitively articulated, from the
mysterious opening Pavane to the majestic
Jardin Féerique.
These are fine fables indeed – engaging
repertoire beautifully performed – how could
we ask for more?
Richard Haskell
iFugue – A World of Fugues
Ensemble Vivant
Opening Day ODR 7477
(ensemblevivant.com)
! A homage to
J.S. Bach and an
imaginative exploration
of fugues from
around the world
and across the
centuries, this album is beaming with creative
sonic adventures. Hop on board and you will
hear music that is entertaining, stylish and
absolutely daring in both programming and
performances. Included here are arrangements
of various fugues by Bach as well as
Piazzolla, Romero, Vivaldi, Shostakovich,
Franck and Villa-Lobos. Ensemble Vivant
also presents three world premieres on this
album, expressive contemporary fugues
by Canadian composers John Burke and
Michael Coghlan.
Ensemble Vivant brings out the beauty
and the precision of the form in fugues with
strictly classical foundation. The arrangements
include a varying number of instruments
and some work better than others, but
the performances are always synergetic and
engaging. Burke’s innovative arrangement
of Vivaldi’s Sinfonia in E Minor featuring
percussion (and the clever title iFugue) works
exceptionally well and Catherine Wilson’s
charming rendition of Bach’s Prelude &
Fugue in F-sharp Major captures the essence
of Bach in small gestures. But it is the fugues
in the South American tradition that light
the fire in the ensemble and bring the neverending
cascades of passion and movement.
Fuga con Pajarillo, written by Venezuelan
composer Aldemaro Romero and arranged by
Julien Labro, is simply stunning. A World of
Fugues offers a journey around the world in
15 pieces, each with a message and a beauty
of its own.
Ivana Popovic
Stravinsky Early Ballets
London Symphony Orchestra; Sir Simon
Rattle
LSO Live LSO5096 (lso.co.uk)
! Stravinsky told
stories; his ballets
are like film scores
accompanying every
moment of the
action. Here are his
three early masterpieces,
musical
Art Nouveau,
produced with tremendous care and skill by
the London Symphony Orchestra, led by Sir
Simon Rattle. It’s impossible to overstate the
quality of playing here, at the individual and
ensemble level.
I love how confidently they produce the
now-familiar Firebird, yet the music still
sounds new, and utterly Russian (notwithstanding
the debt owed Ravel, in terms of
the rich orchestration and harmonic colour).
Sharp details emerge from the misterioso bass
murmur of the introduction. The orchestra
provides lush romantic gestures, but gives
nothing away in rhythmic acuity. The
Princess’ Game, the Firebird Variation and
most of all the Infernal Dance will get you up
and dancing. The detail is phenomenal! So
much of what Stravinsky created has since
been borrowed repeatedly, especially by film
48 | July 1 - September 20, 2022 thewholenote.com