Search - Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Elliott Carter, Maurice Ravel :: Ravel: Gaspard de la nuit; Carter: Night Fantasies; Two Diversions; 90+

Lovely, lyrical performance of a modern classic

Joe Barron | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania United States | 07/05/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

""Thorny," "knotty," "craggy," and "acerbic" are some of the unflattering adjectives that unsympathetic critics have used to describe Elliott Carter's "Night Fantasies" since the work's premiere in 1980. Those clichés will have to be retired now en masse as a result of Pierre-Laurent Aimard's marvelously lucid account of Carter's 22-minute meditation on insomnia. Aimard brings a light touch to the sudden mood swings; even the more aggressive sections seem lyrical in comparison to some other readings. (The work has been recorded commercially seven times. Like the composer's Duo for Violin and Piano, it has found a lot of champions in its short life. One sees it entering the mainstream repertoire as time goes on.) Also noteworthy is Aimard's precise pedaling, which gives a haunting, almost ominous quality to many of the soft passages. It is a captivating reading that ranks alongside my two favorites, those of Stephen Drury and Ursula Oppens.



Lucidity is also the watchword in the three other, shorter gems by Carter on the disk: 90+ and the Two Diversions. On a bonus disk, Aimard gives a 25-minute lecture on the music -- in English as well as French and German, for those of you who swing that way. He illustrates his points with plenty of musical examples, separating Carter's conflicting juxtapositions into their separate lines and then putting them back together. Neither overlong nor overly technical, the presentation added a lot to my appreciation of the music, and I've known this work for years. Listen closely, though; Aimard speaks English softly, with an accent.



The CD also includes a fine performance of Ravel's Gaspard de la Nuit, chosen, evidently, as a second nocturne to complement the Night Fantasies. On the bonus disk, Aimard describes the work as a clocklike mechanism, and his precise yet delicate interpretation reflects that attitude.

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Ravel & Carter, brilliantly conceived and performed

R. Hutchinson | a world ruled by fossil fuels and fossil minds | 09/04/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Pierre-Laurent Aimard is a leading performer and interpreter of the contemporary piano repertoire. His recording of Ligeti's etudes, for instance, in the Ligeti Edition series, is amazing (see my review). This particular disc is a brilliant concept, combining two piano nocturnes by Ravel and Carter. Ravel's "Gaspard de la nuit," (Kaspar of the Night -- 23'10") is a lively and accessible piece in three movements, written in 1908. Based on the poetic fantasies of Aloysius Bertrand, the imagery features a water nymph, a gnome, and a scene at a gallows.



Carter's "Night Fantasies" (22'13"), written in 1978-80, does have a minimally programmatic content -- Carter says it is "a piano piece of continuously changing moods, suggesting the fleeting thoughts and feelings that pass through the mind during a period of wakefulness at night" -- but it is more complex and abstract than Ravel's sonata (are you surprised?). Carter utilizes one of his characteristic structural elements, contrasting meters, here of course in the right and left hand instead of different instruments or components of an orchestra. Also included are two shorter pieces by Carter, "Two Diversions (7'37) and "90+" (5'29").



Carter's sonata has been recorded several times already, but I am not sorry that I waited until now to hear it. Aimard has gone to great lengths to make the work accessible, through his sensitive interpretation, through the combination with Ravel, and through a 25-minute tutorial on the bonus disc, in English, French and German. Aimard gently leads the listener through the works' structure, in a smooth, easy-to-take voice, illustrating with passages on piano.



Overall, a great new disc from Warner Classics, presenting a master of modern piano!"

Aimard Rules

C. Blyth | 08/03/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Pierre-Laurent Aimard is one of the most brilliant pianists now on the scene, especially brilliant in his understanding and performance of contemporary music. Several notable pianists have performed and recorded Elliott Carter's NIGHT FANTASIES, but Aimard's is the most lucid and effective. AND it is accompanied by a 20+ minute illustrated analysis of this remarkable piece (with French and German versions, also spoken by Aimard), on an accompanying disc. The Ravel is beautiful."