Dvorak, Brahms, Grieg: Dances for Four Hands CD

Dvorak, Brahms, Grieg: Dances for Four Hands Track Listing of songs: Summertime I; Someone To Watch Over Me; Embraceable You; I Got Rhythm; Summertime II; Prelude I; Prelude II; Prelude III; Rhapsody ...

Dvorak, Brahms, Grieg: Dances for Four Hands Korean-American pianist Beata Moon leads an active life as a composer, performer and educator. After graduating from the Juilliard School in 1990 with a degree in piano performance, she followed her own path to composing first through improvising for dance classes and then by composing music for choreographer Henning Ri¼bsam and his modern dance company, SENSEDANCE. Gradually, she began to compose solo and chamber works for various performers and collaborators, which eventually led to the release of her first CD of entirely her own compositions on the prestigious independent label, Albany Records. Perigee & Apogee was well-received by press and public alike and continues to be broadcast on radio stations across the nation. Composing led her back to piano performance, and Moon performs unique piano recitals featuring both traditional and contemporary works, including her own compositions. An ardent supporter of education and outreach, Moon became a teaching artist in 1997 for Lincoln Center Institute where she continues to lead workshops for students and teachers in the New York Metropolitan area. She has also conducted workshops for school administrators from across the nation. In addition to her private piano teaching studio, Moon works with at-risk youth in conjunction with the Police Athletic League and composer Kevin James' Portraits Project program, which brings musicians and poets together to serve as mentors for the children. In 2001, she formed The Beata Moon Ensemble, an all-female chamber ensemble created to promote women composers, conductors and performers. Comprised of some of the best musicians in New York, they made their debut at Columbia University's Miller Theatre on February 22, 2002, to critical acclaim. Violinist Lara St. John was the guest soloist, and Sarah Ioannides, associate conductor to Tan Dun, led the ensemble in works by Tania Leon, Ruth Crawford, Anne LeBaron, Julia Wolfe, Elena Kats-Chernin and one of Moon's own pieces. Through her work, Moon hopes to reach out to audiences of all backgrounds to share with them how fresh and life-affirming classical music can be. Personnel: Beata Moon (piano, electric piano); Nmon Ford (baritone); Tara Helen O'Connor (flute); Marianne Gythfeldt (clarinet); Jacqueline Leclair (oboe); Laura Koepke (bassoon); Brian Sacawa (alto saxophone); Makoto Nakura (marimba). Recording information: Rose Studio, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

Dvorak, Brahms, Grieg: Dances for Four Hands Eugene Marlow (composer/arranger) has composed classical and jazz pieces for solo instruments, chamber ensembles, and jazz big band. His jazz pieces have been performed by the BMI Jazz Composers Workshop Big Band, the Primary Colors Trio, the SYOTOS Latin/Jazz Band with Chris Washburne, The Numinous Orchestra, The Andy LaVerne Trio, and the Trevor Day Big Band. His classical solo and chamber works have been performed by the Kandinsky and Corigliano String Quartets, the Circadia Woodwind Quintet, the Alaria Chamber Ensemble, and virtuoso pianist Nada Loutfi. He is a member of the BMI Jazz Composers Workshop, the International Association for Jazz Education, the Jazz Journalists Association, and the New York Composers Circle. Marlow is also senior co-chair of the Milt Hinton Jazz Perspectives concert series at Baruch College (The City University of New York). In addition to two other CD projects, Marlow is currently researching a book on jazz in China.

Dvorak, Brahms, Grieg: Dances for Four Hands Review of this CD: Vera Breheda's recording of the 8 Piano Pieces Op. 76 conveys all their romance and tenderness, from the essentially intimate pieces which the composer calls "intermezzi", to the fiery and passionate ones to which he gives the deceptive title "Caprices". These last have all the breathtaking sweep and virtuosity one could desire without becoming mere virtuoso display. The subtleties of Brahms' thought are clothed in the most enchanting sounds, from dreamy repose the utmost fervour and agitation... The recorded sound is warm and spacious. The earlier Handel Variations round out the disc. These were apparently taken from a live performance and although the sound is less pristine, Breheda's performance is no less convincing, both emotionally and intellectually. This is a "must have" disc for all Brahms-lovers. Jerry Kuderna, Berkeley, CA Vera Breheda, born in Hamburg, Germany of Ukrainian parents, came to the U. S at age three. She spent her early childhood in Buffalo, New York where piano and dance consumed most of her after school time. Her early memories were of her parents singing folk songs of their native Ukraine. At age 11, Vera's family moved to San Francisco where she soon became a scholarship piano student of Alma Harrington, Adolph Baller, and Marcus Gordon at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Within several years, she was soloist with the San Francisco Symphony in a special youth concert. She continued her studies with Martin Canin at SUNY Stony Brook, and Leonard Shure in Boston, and in 1983 gave her New York recital debut at Carnegie Recital Hall (Weill Recital Hall). Performing music of many styles, from Baroque to 21st century, Vera Breheda's concertizing has taken her from San Francisco, to New York, Boston, Los Angeles and Seattle, as well as to Germany Austria, Czechoslovakia and Russia. Vera Breheda has appeared as soloist with the Prague Chamber Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony, the Oakland Symphony, the Thalia Orchestra in Seattle, the Kensington Symphony, the Diablo Valley Philharmonic, and the Contra Costa Chamber Orchestra. Breheda has also been a participant in the music festivals at Tanglewood, Aspen, Banff, Florida West Coast, and the Moscow Conservatory of Music. At Banff she was a guest artist with the Fine Arts Quartet. Locally, her Bay Area Solo, duo piano (Kuderna Breheda Duo) and chamber recitals have been in Hertz Hall, Julia Morgan Theater, Trinity Chapel, Old First Church, St. Patrick's Church and Herbst Theater. She has received acclaim for her recent CD release of the "Piano Works of Johannes Brahms." which is in distribution by Con Brio, a classical record label, and is available at ConBrioRecordings A New York Times review of her Carnegie Recital Hall recital called her "a pianist who seems totally engaged in the music she plays."

Dvorak, Brahms, Grieg: Dances for Four Hands Track Listing of songs: DISC 1; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Introduction; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Waltz; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Pas de trois; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Pas de Deux; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Pas d'action; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Subject; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Goblet Dance; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Act One Finale; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; DISC 2; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Dance of the Swans; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Dances of the Corps de Ballet & Dwarves; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena: Arrival of the Guests & Waltz; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Pas de Deux / Hungarian Dance; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Russian Dance; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Spanish Dance; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Neapolitan Dance; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Mazurka; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Entr'acte to Act Four; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Scena; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Dances of the Little Swans; Swan Lake, ballet, Op. 20: Final Scena;

Dvorak, Brahms, Grieg: Dances for Four Hands  

Dvorak, Brahms, Grieg: Dances for Four Hands Salzburg Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra/Yoon K.Lee

Dvorak, Brahms, Grieg: Dances for Four Hands Most of the tracks on "Strange Attractors" were recorded live in concert and paint a surprisingly wide range of pictures, from the frenetic over-caffeinated musings of 'one cup too many' to the sweeping emotional tide of 'The Asymptote'. The evident influences upon these piano improvisations are varied, ranging from George Winston's elegant manipulation of tonal relationships to Claude Debussy's impressionistic, aural snapshots. Also apparent are traces of German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen's compositional techniques based on geometric structures and his fascination with "open forms" derived not from a melodic phrase, but from a particular mood.