Clare Longendyke, piano.
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre I: La Cathédrale engloutie
Amy WILLIAMS: Piano Portraits, Book II: Olga
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre I: Voiles
Amy WILLIAMS : Piano Portraits, Book I: Yvar
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre I: « Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l’air du soir »
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre I: Les collines d’Anacapri
Amy WILLIAMS : Piano Portraits, Book II: Frieda
Claude DEBUSSY : Préludes, Livre I: La danse de Puck
Amy WILLIAMS: Piano Portraits, Book II: Nils
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre I: Des pas sur la neige
Anthony R. GREEN: Fugue — suivant « Des pas sur la neige »
Claude DEBUSSY : Préludes, Livre II: Brouillards
Amy WILLIAMS: Piano Portraits, Book I: Helena
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre II: Canope
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre II: La puerta del Vino
Amy WILLIAMS: Piano Portraits, Book I: Ursula
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre II: La terrasse desaudiences du clair de lune
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre I: Hommage àS. Pickwick Esq. P.P.M.P.C.
Claude DEBUSSY: Préludes, Livre II: Feux d’artifice
Anthony R. GREEN: To Anacreon in the US
Self-released via Bandcamp
Formats: CD, digital download
Release Date: March 1, 2024
Total Duration: 76:50
Giorgio Koukl | 23 MAY 2024
Indianapolis-based pianist Clare Longendyke decided to use an intriguing and peculiar mixture of well-known music like Claude Debussy’s Préludes and some new works from 21st-century composers, specifically Amy Williams and Anthony R. Green, for her debut CD.
CD cover art
This choice may seem a dangerous one at first sight, but listening to the disc exactly in sequence as presented obtains a beautiful picture and juxtaposition of impressionism and a sort of “neo-impressionism,” perfectly demonstrating that it is possible today to write music that uses all the harmonic features of a historical time more than 100 years ago, yet remains perfectly anchored in our time.
Claude Debussy’s Préludes are a collection of 24 piano pieces divided into two books, each containing 12 preludes. They were composed between 1909 and 1913. Debussy’s Préludes are characterized by their evocative titles, such as “La Cathédrale Engloutie” (“The Sunken Cathedral”), which opens the disc and “Feux d’artifice” (“Fireworks”), which is set as closure together with pairings of scores by the before mentioned contemporary composers. As the imagery and atmosphere Debussy tried to evoke have no specific narrative or programmatic structure, the agogically free approach Clare Longendyke has chosen perfectly fits the composer’s intentions.
Longendyke is mostly well under the usual tempo but never really touches the point where she risks losing her audience. Her delicate touch only occasionally lacks some more muscular passages but generally serves the composer very well.
The piano portrait entitled “Olga” by Amy Williams, even if firmly anchored in 20th-century language, possesses a fragrance that fits perfectly well in the precedent impressionistic landscape.
This score is well chosen and is fragile despite some aggressive dissonances.
This mixture of worlds continues in the following tracks, but Debussy’s preludes slowly showcase his innovative harmonic language, which is superior to Ms. Williams.
It’s true that both make ample use of nontraditional scales and take a unique approach to form and structure. But Debussy often employs whole-tone and pentatonic scales, parallel chords, and unresolved dissonances to create a sense of ambiguity and fluidity, while Amy Williams proceeds in a more linear, sometimes even brutal, manner.
The pianist plays all these delicate structures well, using a wide range of textures, from delicate and impressionistic to bold and dramatic.
Then, finally, at track eleven, the first work of Mr. Green is inserted.
It might be considered characteristic that the composer names his work following Debussy’s “Des passes sur la neige” with exactly the same title, adding only “fugue-suivant.”
His world is far more mathematical (in certain points similar to Hindemith), pondered, and certainly not impressionistic. Yet, in some inexplicable way, he fits into this project without any difficulty.
It is difficult in his case to speak about a personal style as in his only other score, called To Anacreon to US, the music is completely different, preferring a deep rumble played by the left hand, which serves as a background for unexpected events, jumps and sparks of the high part of the keyboard. At a certain point, the music literally comes to an explosion, similar to a giant kitchen pot, only to calm down to the end. With its five and half minutes, this piece is the longest track of the disc. Here too, pianist Clare Longendyke displays a nice contrast between refined sound control and violent piano orgy. It’s a pity that the piano used for the recording is sometimes not perfectly tuned and recorded with far too much hall.
While this project is clearly not suited for everyone, if you have a genuine interest in new composers and emerging piano talent, this is a CD that should not be missed. ■
EXTERNAL LINKS:
- Clare Longendyke: clarelongendyke.com
- Amy Williams: amywilliamsmusic.com
- Anthony R. Green: anthonyrgreen.com
Read more by Giorgio Koukl.
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