PPI's Recordings Roundup for May
This month we're listening to music by three composers who, despite living in different parts of Europe and writing in very different styles, have one thing in common: Their birthdays were celebrated in May!
So as you head outside for a long springtime walk or curl up on the couch for a candlelit listening session, be sure to add these incredible recordings to your queue:
Domenico Scarlatti's bubbly Sonata in C Major, performed by Fazil Say
Johannes Brahms's Intermezzo in E-flat Major, a tender lullaby of sorrow and longing, in a new recording by Nino Gvetadze
Erik Satie's calming Gnossienne No. 5, realized by Bertrand Chamayou
FAZIL SAY
Domenico Scarlatti: Keyboard Sonata in C Major
With its jaunty dance tunes and playful trills that tickle the ear, the first movement of Scarlatti's Sonata in C Major is ideal music to enjoy while brewing a fresh pot of coffee on a sun-drenched morning. As part of his new series of recordings on Warner Classics, Turkish pianist Fazil Say delivers a buoyant interpretation of Scarlatti's sonata that honors the "beautiful melodies and rhythmic energy" he loves about Baroque keyboard music.
NINO GVETADZE
Johannes Brahms: Intermezzo in E-flat Major
In contrast to Scarlatti's morning mood, Brahms's Intermezzo in E-flat Major transports both heart and mind to a moonlit bedroom where a tender-hearted lullaby sings a song of longing. Georgian pianist Nino Gvetadze's new recording amplifies the work's contrasts, as she moves between the sweetness of its opening melody and the hushed melancholy that emerges in the intermezzo's shadowy center.
BERTRAND CHAMAYOU
Erik Satie: Gnossienne No. 5
Both comforting and haunting, simple and surreal, Satie's piano music seems to stand outside of time itself. While the composer's beloved Gymnopedie No. 1 has become one of the best-known pieces of classical piano music, we find the Gnossienne No. 5 just as captivating — especially when performed with the effortless elegance and singing tone of French pianist Bertrand Chamayou.