Portrait (Compilation)
Beschrijving
Content :
- Un matin d'automne
- Une allée au bois
- Comme une étoile
- Rêverie
- Valse romantique No. 1
- Esperanza
- Ballade en Sol majeur
- Air et Gigue
- Tonada
- Nocturne
- Appassionato
- Tristeza
- Danza
- L'ayre d'Isabelle
Also available on CD (DZ 650CD)
"This hefty volume appears to be an overview of this Canadian
composer's work already published by LPD, and I say this only
because I have aIready reviewed several of these pieces as separate
volumes in the past years.
There is certainly plenty of scope in this fine and varied bunch of
pieces. It is immediately noticeable how Gaudreau rarely writes the
obvious harmonic progression, for there are many times where the
next bar or phrase catches you out in some way. Witness the opening
Un Matin D'Automne, a largo 2/4 work in A major consisting entirely
of semiquavers, and mostly of arpeggios covering an entire bar.
Rarely does the arpeggiated chord take you where you expect you
might be going. The surprise factor is high here. Une Allee Au Bois
is ostensibly a mazurka but one where the rhythm of the melody
lands you on entirely the wrong beat; e,g. in bars 5 and 6. Here
the apparent simplicity of the melody leads you onto what feels
like it ought to be a first beat of a new bar but instead arrives a
beat early, leaving a strangely staggering feel to it all. This
happens a number of times in this piece. So what appears to be a
simple tune is in fact very cleverly done!
In a volume as huge as this there is only room to mention a few
highlights, namely the interestingly harmonised Rêverie, the
folkdance-like Esperanza, with its constantly shifting time
signatures, the B minor Nocturne with the 3rd string tuned to F
sharp and finally the aptly-named Appassionato. There are plenty of
moderately difficult pieces here to satisfy the most critical of
players and as such I can heartily recommend it to any interested
parties."
Chris Dumigan (Classical Guitar Magazine)