Single Review
For Lisa Swerdlow
“Carousel of Life”
Review by Kerry Barnes
Piano Solo with Orchestration.
I’m thrilled to bits to be reviewing yet another superb recording from this amazing artist, Lisa Swerdlow!!
“Carousel of Life”
What a lovely beginning!.....a soulful major 7th arpeggio in the left, just riding around, alone, but wait, Lisa calls to her woodwind playground, a clever clarinet responds and joins her in a
beautiful counterpart, they gently weave and caress their musical narrative, fluent in partnership.
And that’s just the intro!!
An intro which progresses into a warm and inviting 2nd movement of a Romantic Concerto. I’m getting Schuman and Clayderman strings, and a sublime Compound Duple lilt, just beautiful!
Lisa demonstrates incredible facility and dexterity on the piano, effortless trilling, and turning, as she dances with flutes-all-a-flutter. Their attraction towards each other paint glass wings on a butterfly nearby.
I’m loving the occasional unison-playing between piano and strings, very effective, and symphonic.
So uplifting is this major-tonality, riding the light headed heights of a merry-go-round.
A sumptuous modulation at around 02.23 is much welcomed by some powerful and voluptuous chords from Lisa at the piano, rousing and building.
Hints of Nino Rota and a romantic neo-classicism pave the way for flutes to exit a cadenza in concerto form.
Lisa has done an amazing job on orchestration, especially on her first trip out!! Her gift for melody allows the music to open and close like flowers in the sunshine. Glittering, descending
scale fragments illuminate this Carousel ride, which is never drone like, as scale passage work often is on the piano.
A sudden sense of nostalgia grabs me as Lisa enters the coda and gracefully ascends a ladder of pearls in notation, every note with ‘cantabile’ touch.
A forceful and weighted drop sinks in and embeds the final note for us, a deep and resonate bass.
Here endeth the roundabout of life, a ride I’ll never forget!!
Double encore please!!
E N D
For Lisa Swerdlow
“Carousel of Life”
Review by Kerry Barnes
Piano Solo with Orchestration.
I’m thrilled to bits to be reviewing yet another superb recording from this amazing artist, Lisa Swerdlow!!
“Carousel of Life”
What a lovely beginning!.....a soulful major 7th arpeggio in the left, just riding around, alone, but wait, Lisa calls to her woodwind playground, a clever clarinet responds and joins her in a
beautiful counterpart, they gently weave and caress their musical narrative, fluent in partnership.
And that’s just the intro!!
An intro which progresses into a warm and inviting 2nd movement of a Romantic Concerto. I’m getting Schuman and Clayderman strings, and a sublime Compound Duple lilt, just beautiful!
Lisa demonstrates incredible facility and dexterity on the piano, effortless trilling, and turning, as she dances with flutes-all-a-flutter. Their attraction towards each other paint glass wings on a butterfly nearby.
I’m loving the occasional unison-playing between piano and strings, very effective, and symphonic.
So uplifting is this major-tonality, riding the light headed heights of a merry-go-round.
A sumptuous modulation at around 02.23 is much welcomed by some powerful and voluptuous chords from Lisa at the piano, rousing and building.
Hints of Nino Rota and a romantic neo-classicism pave the way for flutes to exit a cadenza in concerto form.
Lisa has done an amazing job on orchestration, especially on her first trip out!! Her gift for melody allows the music to open and close like flowers in the sunshine. Glittering, descending
scale fragments illuminate this Carousel ride, which is never drone like, as scale passage work often is on the piano.
A sudden sense of nostalgia grabs me as Lisa enters the coda and gracefully ascends a ladder of pearls in notation, every note with ‘cantabile’ touch.
A forceful and weighted drop sinks in and embeds the final note for us, a deep and resonate bass.
Here endeth the roundabout of life, a ride I’ll never forget!!
Double encore please!!
E N D