be.four

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be.four
Studio album by Gershwin Piano Quartet

Publication
(s)

2010

Label (s) ZHdK Records

Format (s)

CD + DVD

Genre (s)

Classical music , jazz

Title (number)

CD: 12
DVD: 6

running time

CD: 68:44
DVD: 36:18

occupation 4 × piano

Studio (s)

Silent Work Studio

chronology
Playing on 4 Pianos
(1999) 		be.four Transatlantiques

be.four is a music album by the piano ensemble Gershwin Piano Quartet . It was released in 2010 by ZHdK Records and contains classical music and jazz in one arrangement for four grand pianos .

Music genre

Most of the pieces on this album date from the first third of the 20th century. What is special about the recording are the arrangements of the pieces for four grand pianos that were originally composed as orchestral works. Some composers have had piano versions of their works themselves. So had Igor Stravinsky his ballet Petrushka originally planned as a piano concerto, and George Gershwin also had a piano version of An American in Paris wrote. Maurice Ravel even wrote a version for two pianos for La Valse .

However, the quartet did not start from these piano versions or simply distributed the orchestral parts evenly over the four grand pianos. Instead, they developed their own arrangements, which on the one hand take into account the spatial distribution of the voices and on the other hand take advantage of new tonal possibilities such as B. striking the strings in the piano with soft mallets or glissandi with your fingers directly on the strings. Stefan Wirth has converted a theme from a canon by Astor Piazzolla into a fugue in which wooden blocks are also used as percussion instruments .

History of origin

The Gershwin Piano Quartet had already arranged and performed Gershwin's pieces for four pianos since 1996. In 1999 the CD Playing on 4 Pianos was released by Jecklin Edition. In the meantime, however, the quartet had also added works by other, above all European, composers to their repertoire. In addition, Marlis Walter and Nik Bärtsch had left the ensemble, and in 2007 Mischa Cheung and Benjamin Engeli joined them. So the idea arose to bring out a new CD with the new line-up and then to compare and relate the works of European and American composers from the beginning of the 20th century. The pieces for the CD were recorded in October 2008 in the large concert hall of the Zurich University of the Arts at Florhofgasse 6. The recording and the subsequent audio processing were carried out under the technical direction of Lasse Nipkow by the Silent Work Studio in Auro-3D technology. Three Steinway D-wings and a Fazioli- wing were used for the recording .

Since the performances of the quartet also live from the visual impression, a DVD is enclosed with the CD, which contains recordings of live performances as well as specially made documentation. The interplay of the four musicians can be seen particularly well in the performance of An American in Paris as Black Theater and in the representation of the Tango fugue with a split screen , a quarter for each pianist. Most of the video recordings were made in 2009 under the direction of Georg Lendorff . The quartet has also published some of these videos on its website.

Track list

CD:

  1. The Shrovetide Fair - 05:25 (from Petrushka by Igor Stravinsky , arrangement Benjamin Engeli)
  2. Petrushkas Cell - 02:56 (from Petrushka, arrangement Mischa Cheung)
  3. Russian Dance - 02:00 (from Petruschka, arrangement André Desponds)
  4. Dance of the Wet Nurses - 01:45 (from Petruschka, arrangement Stefan Wirth)
  5. Dance of the Coachmen And Grooms - 01:57 (from Petruschka, arrangement Stefan Wirth)
  6. The Masqueraders - 01:35 (from Petruschka, arrangement Stefan Wirth)
  7. Tango-Fugue on a Theme by Astor Piazzolla - 04:57 (Stefan Wirth based on a theme by Astor Piazzolla )
  8. La Valse - 12:18 ( Maurice Ravel , arrangement Stefan Wirth)
  9. Night and Day - 07:22 ( Cole Porter , arrangement Gershwin Piano Quartet)
  10. An American in Paris - 16:11 ( George Gershwin , arrangement Stefan Wirth, Marlis Walter)
  11. The Man I Love - 06:34 (George Gershwin, arrangement Gershwin Piano Quartet)
  12. I Got Rhythm - 05:42 (George Gershwin, arrangement André Desponds)

DVD:

  1. Trailer - 7:19
  2. An American in Paris - 7:12 (as Black Theater )
  3. Tango-Fugue on a Theme by Piazzolla - 5:07 (with four-split screen)
  4. I Got Rhythm - 5:24 (live)
  5. Trip to China - 6:02 (concert tour to China in November 2009, accompanied by Rhapsody in Blue )
  6. Oh, Lady Be Good! - 1:14 (live at the Dolder Grand Hotel, Zurich)

reception

In the culture tip of DRS 2 , Roland Wächter said in a short review of the album:

“Actually, 88 keys, 10 fingers and 2 feet are enough. So what are 352 keys, 40 fingers and 8 feet for? Or in other words: four wings? A lot, even if there are four clever and musical minds like the Gershwin Piano Quartet. Be it Stravinsky, Ravel or Gershwin: There is always pure listening pleasure with so much tonal delicacy, rhythmic precision and noticeable joy in making music! "

- Roland Wächter on DRS 2

Reviews also appeared in various newspapers. The Tages-Anzeiger wrote :

“If symphonic works have been (or are still being arranged) for piano, it is mostly for practical reasons: a piano is easier to find than an orchestra. If the Zurich-based Gershwin Piano Quartet now composes orchestral works for four pianos, then that has nothing to do with pragmatic considerations: Because four pianos at a time are only available in the instrument business. And only a few works are composed in such a way that they could meaningfully employ eight professional pianist hands. Nevertheless, these piano quartet arrangements are more than original finger exercises. The pianists Mischa Cheung, André Desponds, Benjamin Engeli and Stefan Wirth, who all present themselves as arrangers, have taste and imagination when it comes to channeling the powerful sound of their 352 keys. The edits sound amazingly transparent, thanks to clever recording technology, also spatially; and when the piano is also played in Ravel's «La valse», one almost finds oneself in the orchestral realm again. In spite of all the care for the sound, it was a wise decision that the quartet took on mainly rhythmic works: Stravinsky's “Petrushka Suite” or pieces by namesake George Gershwin. Only Desponds, the oldest of the four, has relevant jazz experience; but the others also have the flair for this music. Even when they form a sonic steamroller, they retain a certain degree of mobility. You like to be rolled over. "

- Susanne Kübler in the Tages-Anzeiger

At the beginning of 2012 the following review appeared in the journal Musik & Theater:

“The four guys of the Gershwin Piano Quartet - Mischa Cheung, André Desponds, Benjamin Engeli and Stefan Wirth - should not only be heard but also seen. In concert or, even better, on the bonus DVD. Because you often see the forty fingers dancing, racing, jumping, sneaking and flying across the black and white parquet in close-up. You seldom experience playing the piano in a more sensual, spirited, groovy, nonchalant, coordinated, refined ... And that, as I said, times four. The formation was founded in 1996 by André Desponds. He is also known as a pianistic clown. What is offered here, on the other hand, has nothing to do with clowning, although a delicious pinch of circus artistry and even a little winking magic is always included. To experience four pianists alone on four grand pianos at the same time offers an unusual tickle for the ears and something for the eye too. The program includes classics from the namesake such as “An American in Paris” or “I Got Rhythm”, but also Stravinsky's “Petruschka” suite or Ravel's “La valse” • arranged and adapted for eight hands by members of the ensemble. With stupendous precision and sharpened wit, you smash each other thematic balls, breathe in the same pulse, stand up to your feet, play catch, sometimes reach into the string boxes. Or to little thugs and car horns. Four grand pianos, four ore musical players replace so playfully - playfully! - a whole orchestra. "

- Bruno Rauch in Music & Theater

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Thomas Meyer in conversation with Benjamin Engeli and Stefan Wirth. In: Supplement to the CD be.four . August 2010
  2. ↑ be.four. In: Website of the Silent Work Studio. Retrieved December 16, 2012 .
  3. ^ Gershwin Piano Quartet Commercial. (No longer available online.) In: Georg Lendorff's website. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013 ; Retrieved December 16, 2012 .
  4. ↑ Media. In: Website of the Gershwin Piano Quartet. Retrieved December 16, 2012 .
  5. ↑ Roland Wächter: Sonic delicacy. In: DRS 2 culture tip. December 18, 2010, accessed December 12, 2012 .
  6. ^ Susanne Kübler: Review: Gershwin Piano Quartet. Symphonic for 352 keys . In: Tages-Anzeiger . Zurich May 27, 2011, p. 30 ( online at ZHdK Records).
  7. ↑ Bruno Rauch: They Got Rhythm . In: Music & Theater . January / February, No. 1/2 . Südostschweiz Presse und Print AG, February 2012, ISSN  0931-8194 .