Simon Callaghan, Ashok Klouda, Members of Piatti Quartet – Chamber Music of William Busch (2025) [FLAC 24bit/96kHz]

Simon Callaghan, Ashok Klouda, Members of Piatti Quartet - Chamber Music of William Busch (2025) [FLAC 24bit/96kHz] Download

Lyrita releases its Chamber Music of William Busch album on 3 January 2025, with members of the Piatti Quartet, Simon Callaghan and Ashok Klouda (SRCD 439).

Three Pieces for Violin and Piano were written as individual works: as such, they can be presented separately or, if given collectively as a suite, played in any order. Busch wrote his Passacaglia for violin and viola in 1939: the score takes the form of a decisive, four-bar theme followed by thirty variants upon it. These mini variations range widely in character, from trenchant and forceful to airy and smooth.A Memory for ‘Cello and Piano was written for Elizabeth Poston. Busch subtly conveys the idea of a reminiscence suggested by the title with simple, lightly sketched ideas presented with an air of hazy nostalgia. Eventually, the feeling of distance and reserve created in the opening portion of the work is replaced by a more troubled mood. The music ends in sorrow with a heartfelt, steeply descending sequence for unaccompanied cello followed by the merest hint of the opening material.

The Quartet for Piano and Strings is the most substantial of William Busch’s chamber pieces. Although the composer’s lyrical gifts are much in evidence, the four movements are also rigorously concise. Considerable dramatic rewards are gained from the creative tension between the music’s unforced expressivity and the formal rigour with which Busch’s powerful themes are worked out.

The Suite for ‘Cello and Piano is among Busch’s most searching and variegated instrumental works. In a postwar assessment of the score, The Times’ critic noted that its four pieces ‘reveal a sensitive and interesting mind’.

Elegy for ‘Cello and Piano exploits fully the stringed instrument’s lyrical qualities and capacity for rich, autumnal colours. The work begins with an extended soliloquy for unaccompanied cello and the cellist continues to preside over the entire opening section, which features only a couple of brief interjections from the piano. © Paul Conway

Tracklist:

1-01. Michael Trainor – Three pieces for violin and piano: I. Cantilena, Larghetto con molto espressione (03:29)
1-02. Michael Trainor – Three pieces for violin and piano: II. Caprice, Molto vivace, leggiero e ritmico (02:56)
1-03. Michael Trainor – Three pieces for violin and piano: III. Lacrimosa, Andante con molto espressione (05:31)
1-04. Michael Trainor – Passacaglia for violin and viola: Allegro con brio, energico (07:15)
1-05. Jessie Ann Richardson – A Memory for violoncello and piano: Lento, molto espressivo (03:22)
1-06. Michael Trainor – Quartet for piano and strings: I. Allegro con brio (10:23)
1-07. Michael Trainor – Quartet for piano and strings: II. Largo, molto cantabile ed espressivo (06:35)
1-08. Michael Trainor – Quartet for piano and strings: III. Molto vivace ed energico (07:12)
1-09. Michael Trainor – Quartet for piano and strings: IV. Andante non troppo, con solennita (06:58)
1-10. Ashok Klouda – Suite for cello and piano: I. Prelude, Grave, risoluto e con intensità (04:37)
1-11. Ashok Klouda – Suite for cello and piano: II. Capricco, Allegro giocoso (03:51)
1-12. Ashok Klouda – Suite for cello and piano: III. Nocturne, Adagio, molto tranquillo ma con espressione (03:12)
1-13. Ashok Klouda – Suite for cello and piano: IV. Tarantella, Presto, molto sostenuto (02:38)
1-14. Ashok Klouda – Elegy for violoncello and piano: Adagio, molto sostenuto (06:38)