Frank Bridge (1879-1941) Tks. 14, 25

English composer Frank Bridge is an interesting and
enigmatic figure in British music. His compositions range from simple,
melodious works included here to the highly dissonant style of the
Expressionist composers. He was a multi-faceted musician, an accomplished
violinist and respected conductor. Both pieces on this CD come from a set of
three pieces titled, Miniature Pastorals composed in 1917.

Frederic Chopin (1810-1849) Tk. 3

Chopin revolutionized piano composition by making use of the
full range of the keyboard. His lyricism and harmonic approach is unique, and
his melodies are unsurpassed. The Andante Spianato was composed as the
solo piano introduction for his Grande Polonaise Brillante, which is his
sixth and final work for piano and orchestra, composed around 1831. It is a
tranquil, harp like nocturne with a pleasant mazurka that appears about
two-thirds into the work. Though often performed together, the Andante
Spianato is a beautiful piece and can stand alone.

Claude Debussy (1862-1918) Tk. 11

Composed in 1910, La fille aux cheveux de lin from Préludes, Bk. 1 is one of Debussy’s most famous works. The
title for each of the 12 pieces in Book 1 was placed after the last measure.
Thus, listeners would not be influenced by preconceived ideas stemming from the
titles, but rather could respond to the lush harmonies on their own terms.

Niels Gade (1817-1890) Tks. 22, 30

Considered the most important Danish composer in his day,
Gade was a composer, conductor, violinist, organist and teacher. Early in his
career, he became friends with Mendelssohn. He was also friends with Robert
Schumann and his shorter piano works show a similar affinity towards Romantic
era character pieces. In 1848 he became the Director of the Copenhagen Musical
Society, a post he held until his death in 1890. He taught both Edvard Grieg
and Carl Nielsen. Composed in 1857, Evening Twilight is a translation of
the title found in Idyllen, Op. 34, No. 4 (Le Crépuscule) and the
piece gives the listener just this impression. As the title suggests, the Scherzo
in Aquarelle, Op. 19 (1850) also sparkles in a bright, energetic style.

Reinhold Glière (1875-1956) Tks. 1, 5, 6, 10, 19

Russian composer Reinhold Glière spent much of his life teaching and his students included
Sergei Prokofiev and Aram Khachaturian. He had an active career, and
successfully navigated through Russian upheavals and totalitarian regimes. His
music is a rich mix of lyrical melodies and colorful harmonies composed in
traditional forms. Though some of his larger works are known outside Russian,
his piano works remain relatively obscure. Published in 1909, Twelve
Sketches, Op. 47, No. 3 was chosen because of its joyous nature and offbeat
5/4 meter. Also published in 1909, the entire set of Eight Easy Pieces, op.
43, is accessible for intermediate students.

Alexander Gretchaninov (1864-1956) Tk. 4

Gretchaninov came to music studies very late because his
father expected him to manage the family business. He began his studies,
unbeknownst to his father, in 1881 at the Moscow Conservatory and in the late
1880s moved to St. Petersburg where he became acquainted with Rimsky-Korsakov.
Rimsky-Korsakov saw great potential and became a mentor, supplying him with
both instruction and financial support. His works became very popular in
Russian and by 1910, he was given an annual pension by the Tsar. Although he
remained in Russia for several years after the Revolution, he eventually
emigrated, first to France, and then to the United States. Like Kabalevsky,
many of his works are composed for children and are in the Romantic style. Dew
Drops, Op. 127b No. 2 is just such a set of pieces and it includes In
the Garden Picking Flowers.

Jacques Ibert (1890-1962) Tks. 8, 15

Jacques Ibert, a French composer, was very prolific,
composing in many media including operas, music theatre, and instrumental
works. He began his career in the dramatic arts before turning to music. He
viewed musical expression as another aspect of one=s
total experience. The Petite Suite is a set of 15 small pieces all with
descriptive titles, published in wartime in Switzerland in 1944. Noted for his
sensitivity to melody and harmony, Ibert=s
piano music often consists of short movements, many with picturesque titles.
These pieces appear to be modeled on the compositional style of Robert
Schumann, whom he greatly admired. Histoires, (1922) a similarly
composed set of 10 character pieces and a more widely known work, has as one of
its most famous pieces, The Little White Donkey.

Sergei Lyapunov (1859-1924) Tk. 9

Sergei Lyapunov‘s piano teachers included a former pupil of Franz Liszt and his composition
instructors included a former pupil of Tchaikovsky. Lyapunov went to St.
Petersburg in 1885 and formed a lifelong friendship with Balakirev. After the
Revolution he relocated to Paris where he taught until his death in 1924. He is
best known for his Douze études d’exécution transcentdente composed in
the memory of Liszt of which the Berceuse (1897/98) is first in the set.

Edward MacDowell (1860-1908) (Edgar Thorn) Tks. 12, 18

Edward MacDowell is an American composer most often
recognized for his composition, To a Wild Rose. He had a very
interesting musical education which included studying with a Columbian
violinist and a Venezuelan pianist. Later he studied at the Paris Conservatoire
and also in Frankfurt, Germany. From 1896-1898 MacDowell published 13 piano
pieces and four four-part songs under the pseudonym Edgar Thorn. Apparently, he
adopted this name when he became conductor of the Mendelssohn Glee club. Having
written some part songs, he did not want the group to know they were composed
by him, lest he appear immodest. Once he adopted this pseudonym, he then
continued composing under the name for three years and dedicated all the
royalties from these compositions to a nurse in Europe who had been very kind
to his wife when she was in Europe as a little girl. Both Amourette and Forgotten
Fairy Tales were composed under this pseudonym. Though MacDowell claimed he
masked his compositional style, the melodic structure still reveals his lyrical
and serene approach to melody.

Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) Tk. 27

Mendelssohn composed eight sets of piano works each with six
pieces titled, Songs Without Words. Composed with the 19^th
century, middle-class household in mind, they range in difficulty from
intermediate to advanced, and are character pieces in their truest form. They
do not try to describe anything in specific terms; instead, they are lyrical
expressions of moments in time. Composed between 1829-1830, the Songs
Without Words, Op. 19, No. 1 is the first composition in the first set of
these works which spanned his entire compositional life. It sets the tone for
all the pieces that came after it and captures Mendelssohn=s lyrical style.

Federico Mompou (1893-1987) Tk. 2

Spanish composer, Federico Mompou is best known for his
impressionist piano works and his songs. He was a miniaturist and his works
give a feeling of fleeting improvisations rather than the worked out motives
one would find in a classical sonata. Gitano from Impresiones
intimas, is the last piece in a set of nine impressions composed
between 1911-1914 and was Mompou’s first published work. Gitano is
propelled forward by the regularity of a syncopated bass pattern similar to an
ostinato figure, and it gives the listener a continuous sense of motion.

Moritz Moszkowski (1854-1925) Tks. 23, 24

The famous Polish pianist, Ignacy Paderewski, is reputed to
have said that after the Chopin, Moritz Moszkowski knew best how to write for
the piano. Indeed, his piano works are very pianistic and typically have a
seamless fluidity. Offrande, the second piece in Trois Pieces,
Op. 87 and Siciliano from Trois Morceaux poétiques, Op. 42 are no
exceptions. The Siciliano=s compound meter sways in an easy manner and Offrande’s happy
exuberance helps one to understand how, in his day, Moszkowski was very popular
and respected. Many of his works are attractive, bright spirited and range in
difficulty from intermediate to advanced.

Nkeiru Okoye Tk. 16

Nkeiru Okoye is a rising star among African women composers.
Born in New York of Nigerian descent, Dr. Okoye earned music degrees at Oberlin
and Rutgers and has received several composition awards. Inspired by childhood
memories of the rains in Nigeria, Dancing Barefoot in the Rain, is the
first in a set of three pieces found in the piano suite, African Sketches.