Pieces of Mind
Rossini Hayward
No catalogue No. : Available from: - www.rossinihayward.com/en/cd
British – born Hayward’s recording has a serene quality with the accent on beautifully harmonious sounds. Three are original works and the other eight are his arrangements.
One finds the Chopin ‘Raindrop ‘Prelude, quite a faithful arrangement with only a couple of places where it sounds momentarily trickier than it would on the piano. The following song arrangement by Jacques Arcadelt from the 16th Century was originally written for four voices and is suitably tranquil and no doubt faithful to the original. The arranging of vocal pieces, as in the previous occurs several more times throughout this recording, and is obviously a style Hayward loves and excels in. The lullaby Hanschen Klein is a cheerful piece that you will recognize, if not by its title, and is beautiful in its simplicity and immediacy. Hayward’s Variations on a Theme of Beethoven (Ode to Joy), doffs its cap to Sor, and indeed sounds as if it could have been written by the great man, whilst his Tannhauser Fantasy includes a number of Wagner’s melodies that Hayward weaves into a satisfying whole. The other original work is Through Twilight Woods which has darker harmonies at times and is the most modern sounds on an album that is beautifully played and recorded but, if it has a fault, is a little too laid – back for too long, with a little too much reliance on slow songs and pieces that could do with a couple of fast, dance like pieces to provide more contrast.
Chris Dumigan
Kommentarer