Catalogue

Summary:

“a distinctive and excellently engineered debut by a thoughtful and seasoned artist: highly recommended.” – Gramophone

At first glance, the musical worlds of Frédéric Chopin and William Bolcom would seem strange bedfellows. But on his solo debut recording, Israeli American pianist Ran Dank makes a convincing case for pairing the two composers.

The former, Poland’s national composer, is synonymous with pianistic panache. The latter, a leading American, possesses one of contemporary music’s most bold and inventive voices. Juxtaposing the works of these two pianist-composers reveals their common affinity for the keyboard and ear for sound and sense of structure.

William Bolcom’s Twelve New Etudes won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988. Wonderfully eclectic, they move effortlessly between one musical idiom to another with endless ingenuity, exhibiting all the traits of Bolcom’s compositional craft. Chopin equally excelled with his Etudes, but Dank turns to his plentiful Polonaises, Mazurkas and Waltzes which range in style from heroic, to dark and brooding, haunting and beautiful.

Ran Dank, a winner of numerous international competitions and prizes, has been significantly influenced by these two composers who have shaped his trajectory as a pianist and musician. As a child to two parents from Poland, Chopin played a meaningful part in his upbringing, and he became mesmerised by the composer’s music at an early age. Bolcom’s music was a much later discovery, but one that has become equally valuable and fitting, following Dank’s move to America.

Tracklist:

FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN (1810–1849)
1. Polonaise in C minor, Op 40 No. 2 09:32

WILLIAM BOLCOM (b. 1938)
2-4. Twelve New Etudes for Piano, Book I
No. 1. Fast, furious 00:53
No. 2. Récitatif 04:26
No. 3. Mirrors 01:55

FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN
5. Mazurka in C Major, Op. 68 No. 1 01:49
6. Mazurka in G minor, Op. 67 No. 2 02:14
7. Mazurka in A minor, “Emile Gaillard” 03:01

WILLIAM BOLCOM
8-10. Twelve New Etudes for Piano Book II
No. 4. Scène d’opéra 02:39
No. 5. Butterflies, hummingbirds 02:23
No. 6. Nocturne 02:30

FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN
11. Waltz in B minor, Op. 69 No. 2 03:56
12. Waltz in A-flat Major, Op. 42 04:00

WILLIAM BOLCOM
13-15. Twelve New Etudes for Piano, Book III
No. 7. Premonitions 03:03
No. 8. Rag infernal (Syncopes apocalyptiques) 2:22
No. 9. Invention 03:11

FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN
16. Polonaise in A-flat Major, Op. 53 07:33

WILLIAM BOLCOM
17-19. Twelve New Etudes for Piano, Book IV
No. 10. Vers le silence 07:16
No. 11. Hi-jinks 02:07
No. 12. Hymne à l’amour 06:20

FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN
20. Mazurka in F minor, Op. 68 No. 4 02:13

Total timing 73:25

Ran Dank, piano

Produced and engineered by Judith Sherman
Engineering and editing assistant: Jeanne Velonis
Recorded March 11-13, 2016, at the American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York
Steinway technicians: Li Li Dong and Erik Diehl Mastered by Judith Sherman and Jeanne Velonis