Ronald Stevenson: Piano Music, Volume Four
This fourth volume in Christopher Guild’s ongoing survey of the piano music of the pianist-composer Ronald Stevenson (1928–2015) – a major figure in the cultural life of twentieth- century Scotland – presents works inspired by the human voice, where Stevenson was concerned above all to make the piano sing, to allow it to express human feeling as naturally as possible. That concern can be heard both in his own pieces and his many transcriptions of music by other composers, which balance sophisticated craftsmanship and a refreshing emotional directness.
Christopher Guild, piano
Listen To This Recording:
-
Suite from Paderewski’s ‘Manru’ (1961)*
- I Introduction and Gipsy March
- II Gipsy Song
- III Lullaby
- IV Cracovienne
- Song without words
- No. 1 Dedication
- No. 2 The Fly
- No. 3 Gone Away
- No. 4 Nocturne
- No. 5 Master and Pupil
- No. 6 Spring
- Interlude: The Blossoming Cherry (Aubade)
- No. 7 Curfew
- No. 8 Hiroshima
- No. 9 Epilogue
- Louise – Romance
- No. 1 Elëanore
- No. 2 So we’ll go no more a-roving
- No. 3 Les Huguenots: Romance: Plus blanche que la plus blanche hermine
- No. 4 In the Silent Night
- No. 5 Go not, happy day!
- No. 1 Fly Home, Little Heart
- No. 2 We’ll Gather Lilacs
- No. 3 Hiawatha: Demande et Réponse
- No. 4 Maytime: Will you remember? (Sweethearts)
- No. 1 Jeannie with the light brown hair
- No. 2 Come where my love lies dreaming
- No. 3 Beautiful Dreamer
Song without Words (1988)*
Nine Haiku (1971, arr. 2006)*
Charpentier: Louise – Romance (c. 1970)*
L’Art Nouveau du chant appliqué au piano (1980–88)
Volume One
Volume Two
Volume Three*
*First Recordings
MusicWeb International :
‘Christopher Guild has taken all these pieces to his heart. […] he has a clear understanding of, and sympathy with, Ronald Stevenson’s eclectic musical style.
I thoroughly enjoyed this latest volume in Christopher Guild’s survey of Ronald Stevenson’s piano music.’
—John France. MusicWeb International
MusicWeb International :
‘As with the other volumes in this series, Christopher Guild proves an ideal interpreter of Stevenson’s music. His strongly committed playing and copious and informative booklet essays are the main selling points of this series. The recorded sound, as with all Toccata releases, is excellent. This is a worthy addition to the growing catalogue of Ronald Stevenson’s music on disc, especially as many of these pieces are here receiving their première recordings.’
—Stuart Sillitoe, MusicWeb International
MusicWeb International :
‘I can only echo what other reviewers have said; first rate, brilliant and sympathetic pianism in an album that has huge variety and range.
A fascinating glimpse into Stevenson as transcriber.’
—Rob Challinor, MusicWeb International