Want a whiff of musical seduction? Look no further than Spanish pianist Javier Perianes’s new assorted-truffles treatbox album of solo pieces by Frédéric Chopin and Claude Debussy.
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Oh dear. Chopin and Debussy. Does the world really need yet another recording of either?
You’re forgiven for doubting — until you dip your ears into … les sons et les parfums, Perianes’s limpid sonic pool. The album has just been released by Harmonia Mundi.
The Andalusian native is one of a handful of great younger pianists who have such a secure technique that they can stop worrying about it in order to devote themselves entirely to communicate and colour and shape the music.
Perianes starts with fabulous raw materials: Alternating Chopin and Debussy, starting, respectively with the Op. 57 Berceuse and the Clair de lune from Suite bergamasque.
It’s no stretch to pair Romantic and Impressionist, as both try to use music as a means of evocation — even if they are of very different things. In this case, Chopin and Debussy also work as the raw materials this great pianist can use to demonstrate his artistry.
Not all of the pieces are quiet, smoke-curling, wine-sipping contemplative episodes. Chopin’s great Op. 52 Ballade and Op. 60 Barcarolle are at the album’s emotional and expressive core, made even more compelling by Perianes’ remarkable ability to play loud without a hint of harshness.
Debussy’s piano music poses the dual challenge of needing to have a shimmery surface but also a lot of depth, something Perianes sounds like he was born to balance. The pianist turns even a study in arpeggiation (Étude XI) into musical poetry.
The album closes with the fireworks of L’Isle joyeuse, providing a fine dose of goosebumps to cap the mix of emotional and contemplative joys that have come before.
No, the world doesn’t need another album of Chopin and Debussy. But like all of the other things we don’t need but end up being tempted by anyway, this recording comes with the whiff of the special, the exclusive and an attained elegance that so many others can only dream about.
You can find all of the details and audio samples here.
Here’s the rather pretentious promo video:
John Terauds
- Classical Music 101: What Does A Conductor Do? - June 17, 2019
- Classical Music 101 | What Does Period Instrument Mean? - May 6, 2019
- CLASSICAL MUSIC 101 | What Does It Mean To Be In Tune? - April 23, 2019
