Ran Dank - Vers Le Silence: William Bolcom - Frédéric Chopin (2021) [Official Digital Download 24/96]

Israeli American pianist Ran Dank makes his solo debut recording juxtaposing works by Poland's national composer Frederic Chopin and the American Pulitzer Prize-winning William Bolcom, revealing their common affinity for the keyboard and ear for sound and sense of structure.

At first glance, the musical worlds of Frederic 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 Van Cliburn International Competition finalist and winner of the New York-based Young Concert Artists auditions, 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:
1. Polonaise in C Minor, Op. 40 No. 2 (09:32)
2. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book I: I. Fast, Furious (00:53)
3. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book I: II. Récitatif (04:26)
4. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book I: III. Mirrors (01:54)
5. Mazurka in C Major, Op. 68 No. 1 (01:49)
6. Mazurka in G Minor, Op. 67 No. 2 (02:13)
7. Mazurka in A Minor, “Emile Gaillard” (03:00)
8. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book II: IV. Scène d'opera (02:39)
9. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book II: V. Butterflies, Hummingbirds (02:23)
10. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book II: VI. Nocturne (02:30)
11. Waltz in B Minor, Op. 69 No. 2 (03:55)
12. Waltz in A-Flat Major, Op. 42 (03:59)
13. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book III: VII. Premonitions (03:03)
14. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book III: VIII. Rag Infernal (Syncopes apocalyptiques) (02:21)
15. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book III: IX. Invention (03:11)
16. Polonaise in A-Flat Major, Op. 53 (07:32)
17. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book IV: X. Vers Le Silence (07:16)
18. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book IV: XI. Hi-jinks (02:07)
19. 12 New Etudes for Piano, Book IV: XII. Hymne à l’amour (06:20)
20. Mazurka in F Minor, Op. 68 No. 4 (02:12)


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