Gerard Schurmann: Chamber Music, Volume Three
This is the third Toccata Classics album of the chamber music of Gerard Schurmann, born in the former Dutch East Indies in 1924, British citizen through wartime service in the RAF and now resident in Los Angeles. His two piano quartets, downstream from Bartók, Shostakovich and Britten, present a wide range of moods, from broad and stately tempos to passages of driving energy and excitement. Their quasi-symphonic ambit is contrasted with the tart miniatures of the Serenade for solo violin and the tail-chasing vivacity of Two Violins.
Lyris Quartet
Alyssa Park, violin Tracks 1–3, 13–21
Shalini Vijayan, violin Tracks 16–21
Luke Maurer, viola Tracks 1-3, 13-15
Timothy Loo, cello Tracks 1-3, 13-15
Martin Beaver, violin Tracks 4-12
Mikhail Korzhev, piano Tracks 1-3, 13-15
Listen To This Recording:
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Piano Quartet No. 1 (1986)
- Piano Quartet No. 1, I Ricercare
- Piano Quartet No. 1, II Capriccio
- Piano Quartet No. 1, III Corale
- Serenade for Solo Violin, I Ardente
- Serenade for Solo Violin, II Grazioso
- Serenade for Solo Violin, III Con slancio
- Serenade for Solo Violin, IV Pastorale
- Serenade for Solo Violin, V Burla
- Serenade for Solo Violin, VI Presto
- Serenade for Solo Violin, VII Vivace
- Serenade for Solo Violin, VIII Tranquillo
- Serenade for Solo Violin, IX Pesante – Ardente
- Piano Quartet No. 2, I Allegro moderato
- Piano Quartet No. 2, II Scorrevole – Adagio cantabile
- Piano Quartet No. 2, III Allegro molto
- Two Violins, I Parading
- Two Violins, II Dreaming
- Two Violins, III Playing
- Two Violins, IV Teasing
- Two Violins, V Roaming
- Two Violins, VI Chasing
Serenade for Solo Violin (1969)*
Piano Quartet No. 2 (1997-98)
Two Violins (2015)*
*First Recordings
MusicWeb International :
‘…this is the friendly and approachable face of twentieth century music but also that Schurmann has his own voice that draws you in and also makes you think. […]
I would imagine that the composer must have been delighted with the final cut of these performances. There is some very fine playing here and the energy and vitality of the music is captured to its full where necessary but when needed the reflective nature of the music is thoughtfully conveyed.’
—Gary Higginson, MusicWeb International