On The Edge: Contemporary music for Guitar and Piano By On The Edge Duo

 

On The Edge: Contemporary music for Guitar and Piano

 By

On The Edge Duo

Written by

Andy Rogers

We get a lot of music of all kinds sent to us here at One World Music Radio. Once in a while we receive an album that is totally unlike any other – an album that maybe defies all our usual conceptions of musical styles. This album, “On The Edge: Contemporary music for guitar and piano” by On The Edge Duo is one such album.

On The Edge Duo consists of two outstanding classical musicians: Italian pianist Fabio Afrune and guitarist Francesco Di Giandomenico, a talented musician best known for his work with the Spanish/South American music duo the Sator Duo. What makes this album so different to other releases in the Contemporary Classics field is the very little used pairing of Guitar and Piano.

One of the most interesting things about the album is the conscious decision to include only works by living composers. The Duo chose contemporary works from Annette Kruisbrink, William Bland, Adrian Andrei, Stephen Goss & Giorgio Mirto. Four of these recordings are world-premieres and three were written for or dedicated to the duo.

Make no mistake, this is not chocolate box, easy listening, background music like that made by some classical crossover artists, this is music that requests you to stop and listen to it properly. It varies widely in mood from lively almost aggressive to tranquil, quiet and pastoral, often in the same track.

The first piece is “Snippers” by Annette Kruisbrink, a Dutch classical guitarist and composer with over 300 compositions to her name. This receives its world premiere recording here: Snippers is a real shape-shifter to open the album with - a lively opening with an almost flamenco sound gives way to a calm interlude only for the pace to pick up again and drive the piece forwards. The piece continues to move forward with the guitar and piano interacting almost as though each is wanting to take control of the music in various changes of tempo, until at the end when we reach the crescendo, a reflection of the flamenco sound we heard at the start of the piece.

Next is “Kindred Spirits” by William Bland, an American composer primarily known for his piano sonatas, chamber and orchestral music; this is not only another world premiere, it is also dedicated to the Duo. It has 2 distinct sections: Part 1, Dragon, is lively with dynamic block chords shared between the two soloists as they take turns ramping up the musical tension. Part 2, Pastorale, could not be more different to part 1. This is a really lovely piece of music, a rippling piano supplies the perfect backdrop to a beautiful lead guitar line through a piece of music that truly lives up to its name. Pastorale by name, pastoral by nature.

The third piece, “Six danses de Transylvanie” is composed by Romanian composer Adrian Andrei. It has six separate movements, the shortest of which lasts 39 seconds and the longest 1 minute 58, so the whole piece runs for just over 7 minutes. To my ears if you were to substitute a lute for the guitar and harpsichord for the piano it would have the feel of something from the 15th or 16th century in the way the way the pieces are constructed and combined to form a complete cycle. This is just possibly my favourite section of this very intriguing album and once again is a world premiere recording and dedicated to the duo.

The penultimate work, “Intermezzi” is by Stephen Goss, from Wales and consists of six mood pieces or descriptive musical sketches.. Moto Perpetuo, Bagatelle and Ballad are more uptempo with strong forceful playing by the soloists: Nocturne, Serenade and Lament are, as their titles suggest, more calm and quiet in mood, a work of great contrasts, beautifully played by these two virtuoso musicians.

The album ends with “Introduction and Bridge of Lights” by Italian guitarist and composer Giorgio Mirto. This wonderful piece (dedicated to On The Edge Duo) gets its world premiere here. Both soloists are on top form here. It starts with a beautiful tranquil section (the Introduction) before picking up pace for the Bridge of Lights section of the work, a fantastic and fitting end to the album.

This is a difficult album to summarise but for anyone with even a passing interest in contemporary classical music, or even if well played acoustic music is your choice, then this album should be on your radar. It is not by any means an instant or “easy” album. It needs to be heard properly and it repays repeated listening. Yes, it is “On the Edge” but sometimes a trip to the musical edge to try something new brings its rewards. This is truly one of those times.