Our Money-Back Guarantee
Leon Kirchner: Works for Solo Piano (2007)
by Jeremy Denk (piano), Joel Fan (piano), Jonathan Biss (piano), Leon Fleisher (piano), Max Levinson (piano), Peter Serkin (piano)
A prominent figure in American modernist circles through most of the twentieth century, Leon Kirchner is a highly regarded composer, though his music is perhaps more often discussed than performed, due to its dense chromaticism, angular lines, and generally dark and introspective expressions. This 2007 release from Albany brings together Kirchner's major keyboard works as performed by six gifted pianists who bring distinctive characterizations to the music. Anyone who is familiar with the modern piano repertoire will notice in these selections Kirchner's strong affinity with Schoenberg, though a surprising aspect of these pieces is their resemblance to the ecstatic late works of Scriabin. Kirchner's musical language is remarkably controlled and constant for the years these works span (1948-2006), though a shift toward tonal inflections, if not outright tonality, is apparent in later pieces, most noticeably in the Interlude II and in the Sonata No. 2. However, as with many of this label's retrospective... Hide synopsis
Portions of content provided by Rovi Corporation. © 2013 Rovi Corporation.