Search - Benita Meshulam :: Manuel de Falla: Piano Music [Complete]

De FINITIVE de FALLA

Melvyn M. Sobel | Freeport (Long Island), New York | 06/21/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Simply put: Benita Meshulam makes this music her own, and it's no wonder. She did exactly the same with a gorgeous version of Granados' Goyescas [Chesky] and with a phenomenal traversal of Montsalvatge piano works [ASV]. When I first heard her rendition of Goyescas, I was bowled over. No pianist had ever come this close to getting to the "heart" of the work. No, not like Benita. And so it is with her new set of de Falla. What she reveals in this music--- the inner voices, the atypical melancholy, the subdued, almost fantasia-like episodes, the juxtapositioning of the overt with the contemplative--- is wondrous and is exactly what I adore about her playing. It's fearless, as well, and willing to delve, take risks and extract hidden wonders, hidden magic--- precisely what is called for in de Falla's piano works. For openers, try the beautiful Four Spanish Pieces. Listen to how she handles the melodic lines and the sustained alternation of passion and nostalgia. Try the lovely Vals Capricho, the haunting Nocturne, ethereal Serenata or charming Mazurka for a taste of Meshulam's exceptional sensibility. Sample her rhythmic strut contagiously uncompromised in the Dances from The Three-Cornered Hat, or the sensual tweaking of the oft-hackneyed Ritual Fire Dance. And the Fantasia Baetica? Meshulam transforms this whirlwind into some sort of transcendental "Dies Irae"---the undercurrents, emotions and yearnings interwoven therein are stunning. Don't miss, either, the wistful Cancion, or the delightful dance from La Vida Breve.



There's no doubt in my mind that this set deserves the accolades I hope it will eventually receive. I was enchanted for nearly two hours. Each piece gives special pleasure in turn. But, in Benita's case, it's not only about the music; it's also about the very tangible connection the artist has with what she plays; how she brings her persona to everything she does play, but without distorting it; and how she surrenders herself to the music, becomes vulnerable, and communicates this so convincingly. Frankly, it is something to hear.



[Running time--- CD 1: 52:22 CD 2: 47:16]











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