Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue, Concerto in F, 8 Preludes
£21.80
In stock - available for despatch within 1 working day
Despatch Information
This despatch estimate is based on information from both our own stock and the UK supplier's stock.
If ordering multiple items, we will aim to send everything together so the longest despatch estimate will apply to the complete order.
If you would rather receive certain items more quickly, please place them on a separate order.
If any unexpected delays occur, we will keep you informed of progress via email and not allow other items on the order to be held up.
If you would prefer to receive everything together regardless of any delay, please let us know via email.
Pre-orders will be despatched as close as possible to the release date.
Label: Somm
Cat No: SOMMCD2602
Format: CD
Number of Discs: 2
Release Date: 27th May 2016
Contents
Works
Fragment in G minorI Got Rhythm Variations
Melody in F minor
Novelette in Fourths
Piano Concerto in F major
Preludes (3) for piano
Rhapsody in Blue
Rubato
Sleepless night
Artists
Mark Bebbington (piano)Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor
Leon BotsteinWorks
Fragment in G minorI Got Rhythm Variations
Melody in F minor
Novelette in Fourths
Piano Concerto in F major
Preludes (3) for piano
Rhapsody in Blue
Rubato
Sleepless night
Artists
Mark Bebbington (piano)Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor
Leon BotsteinAbout
Anyone familiar with Mark Bebbington's probing interpretations - which have netted him seven five-star reviews in a row from BBC Music Magazine - and the questing musical explorations of maestro Botstein (currently in his 23rd year as music director of the American Symphony Orchestra) will know what to expect. And, says Bebbington, they uncovered unexpected shades among the famous melodies. "There is a real Mahlerian melancholy that lies at the heart of the slow movement of the Concerto," he says, "and it's when you take note of those profundities that the fierce joy elsewhere really makes sense."
Leon Botstein brings a majestic intensity to the orchestral writing, with Mark Bebbington matching him bar by bar - bringing the same chemistry to the studio that infused their successful appearance together recently at Carnegie Hall. And they equally drink gleefully the heady cocktail of Charleston and ragtime inflected with jazz that spikes these works.
This will be a Gershwin recording to remember - fresh interpretations, a premiere, and two fine musicians at the top of their game.
Reviews
Pianist Mark Bebbington brings a nice balance of swagger and thoughtfulness to this all-Gershwin programme. He has said he finds a “Mahlerian melancholy” in the second movement of the Concerto in F, which is almost a concerto in itself, and his playing here is supported by some shapely and characterful wind playing. But the whole work brings a tautly wound performance under conductor Leon Botstein. Rhapsody in Blue starts with a clarinet solo even more languorous than usual, and the RPO’s colours at times are almost garish – the muted trumpets play up the wah-wahs for all they’re worth. But the performance is light on its feet, and the Variations on I Got Rhythm are similarly persuasive. An extra CD claims to offer the first recording as a complete set of the eight Preludes – five more than most will be familiar with in this form, all snappily played. Erica JealError on this page? Let us know here
Need more information on this product? Click here