I've periodically mentioned my Internet friend Peter Breiner here over the past few years -- a conductor, composer, arranger, pianist and I think he'll clean your windows if it fits into his schedule. I've lost count how many albums he's released, but it's over 100 at this point, which is closing in on the number of CDs I own. And he can now add to that number, since he released a new album last week on the Naxos label.
It was recorded with the Royal Philharmonic that he he conducted and is called A Journey – Calm Romantic Piano Music, Vol. 2. (I was going to say "under his baton," but since he performs at the piano and conducts the orchestra by waving his hand around, I figured that "baton" wasn't appropriate.) There are 23 tracks, around half by Bach, Handel, Haydn, Dvorak and that crowd, and half composed by Breiner himself. He also did the orchestrations (See what I mean about the "cleaning your windows" quip?) I’ve only listened to about the first half of the album so, and I find it so wonderful that I wanted to write about it tonight before I finish the whole thing. The selections that he wrote (which I’ve heard so far) are much less traditionally “classical” than some of his other work and seem more -- for lack of a better word -- accessible, as befits “calm piano music.” I don’t say that critically, just descriptive. After all, the point of the album is “calm piano music.” The first two pieces by him are especially terrific – “The Magic Goblet” and “We Reached This Far.” But I also was particularly taken by the selections, “Snowfall” and "The King of Hyperboles." You can find the album here on Amazon as MP3 downloads, either in full.or whatever individual selections most interest you.
Just to give you a sense of Peter's work on the album, I'm posting a couple of the official music videos that Naxos has released from the recording session. This first is the aforementioned, “The Magic Goblet”. That’s him at the piano and conducting. No baton included.
And this is a music video of one of the other pieces of Peter's own music that I mentioned, as well, his work “The King of Hyperboles,” which I think is beautiful. Though I have no idea which on earth it's called that -- however, I love the whimsy of the title, even if I don't understand it.
Oh, okay, I'll throw in a bonus, just to let you know that I wasn't lying about how there are actually selections by by traditional classical composers on the album, about half of tracks. This is "Dank sei Dir, Herr" by Georg Frederic Handel.
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AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. Feedspot Badge of Honor
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