Music of Alter, Barilari, Gould, Levinson, and Vazquez.
David Yonan, violin; Christopher Ferrer, cello; Susan Merdinger, piano.
Sheridan Music Studio.
By John J. Puccio
Concert pianist and Steinway Artist Susan Merdinger
explains her rationale for the current album, “American Melting Pot,” in this
way: “My goal performing, recording and compiling this ‘American Melting Pot’
CD of my live concert performances of music by American composers is to
demonstrate not only my deep commitment to supporting the work of living
composers of my own time, but also to demonstrate the rich and varied legacies
of musical traditions that are embodied in composers who were both born in the
USA as well as those who were immigrated to the USA and now call America
‘home.’ It is my hope that the true American spirit of welcoming immigrants and
their assimilation into a large society which embraces diversity, inclusivity
and the dissemination of ideas, both musical and otherwise, will be celebrated
and exemplified in the works I have chosen for this compendium of American
music.
“In these works we can hear the influences of musical
styles emanating from or originating in China, Eastern and Western Europe,
South America, and the USA. Indeed, American music is a fusion and integration
of musical styles as our American society is indeed a ‘melting pot’ of which I
am very proud to be a part. It has been my great privilege and honor to work
with each of these talented and distinguished composers.”
What Ms. Merdinger doesn’t mention is that she also
premiered each of the pieces presented here, and that most of the live
selections on the album are those very première performances.
First up on the program is a six-movement work called Pieces
of China (1985) by Pulitzer prizewinning composer Morton Gould (1913-1996).
Ms. Merdinger premiered it in 1990 with the composer present, so we have to
regard it as authoritative. My wife thought it sounded “like a Picasso
painting,” which seems apt given the slightly askew musical portraits of Asia
that Gould paints. Ms. Merdinger approaches them with her usual poise and
grace, allowing her natural virtuosic talents to serve the music rather than
vice versa.
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| Susan Merdinger |
Next is the Ballade in F-sharp minor (2012) by
Argentinean-born composer Fernando Vazquez (b. 1962). Although the Ballade
may be a short piece (a little over six minutes), it includes a pleasing
variety of textures and tunes, which Ms. Merdinger captures with her equally
pleasing, sensitive, and affecting style.
After that, we have the Piano Sonata “My New
Beginning” Part 1 (2018) by Aaron Alter (b. 1955), a piece the composer
dedicated to Ms. Merdinger. Alter says that his inspiration for the piece was
the first movement of Beethoven’s “Walstein” Sonata, Op. 53. You may
recognize bits of the Beethoven, and you may also enjoy the jazz and even rock
variations that Alter places on them. Ms. Merdinger easily keeps pace with the
music, providing it with a poise that other interpretations may miss.
Then, there is the two-part Toccata Gaucha (2008)
by Uruguayan-born composer Elbio Barilari (b. 1952). Barilari is both a
classical composer and a jazz musician, and one can hear elements of both
idioms in the work. It is certainly the jazziest music Ms. Merdinger plays on
the program, and if she’d like to pursue a parallel career I’m sure the jazz
world would welcome her.
The final piece on the agenda is Shtetl Scenes by
Russian-born composer Ilya Levinson (b. 1958). It recounts scenes in a small
Jewish village in pre-World War II Eastern Europe. Here, Ms. Merdinger performs
the trio version of the work, accompanied by David Yonan, violin, and
Christopher Ferrer, cello. The music is melancholic, dramatic, joyful,
introspective, energetic, and haunting by turns. The piece itself and the trio’s
realization of it afforded some of my favorite moments in the album.
Various sound engineers worked with producer Susan
Merdinger at various different venues. For the Morton Gould recording it was
Tim Martyn at Merkin Concert Hall, New York City in 1990. For the Fernando
Vasquez piece it was Hudson Fair at the Chicago Latin Music Festival, 2013. For
the Aaron Alter work it was David Hill and Svetlana Belsky at Harrison Oaks
Studio, Fair Oaks, CA in 2018. For the Elbio Barilari music it was Hudson Fair
again at the Pianoforte Salon in Chicago, 2013. And for the Ilya Levinson
recording, it was Edward Ingold at the Northbrook Public Library, Illinois, in
2016. Various degrees of applause follow each selection.
There is a remarkable similarity of sound on the album,
considering that the selections were recorded over a twenty-six year timespan.
There is some evidence of possible noise reduction in the sound, resulting in a
slight dimming of the highest frequencies. Nevertheless, the engineers miked
things closely enough to reveal good detail yet not so close as to overpower
one’s listening room. More important, the sound appears rich and mildly
resonant, much as a live piano might sound.
JJP
To listen to a brief excerpt from this album, click below:
