Murray Perahia - Songs Without Words (1999)

The elegant and clean lyricism of Murray Perahia's playing fits this program of piano songs without words to a tee. Perahia has always had a wonderful knack for teasing out singing contrapuntal lines that other pianists ignore. Far from sounding willful, such interpretative playing seems to reveal music that one should have been hearing all along. Consequently, Perahia lends all music that falls under his hands a decidedly polyphonic cast. It is therefore not surprising that Perahia renders the richly textured Bach-Busoni chorale transcription, "Nun freut euch, lieben Christen," with unstudied charm. Similarly, in Mendelssohn's 'Songs without Words,' Perahia projects more that composers championing of Bach than his Romantic pioneering. Perahia's playing of Liszt's transcriptions of Schubert songs is virtuosic without being showy. Even in the tour-de-force final strophe of "Auf dem Wasser zu singen," Perahia stresses the singing of individual lines over theatrical dazzle.

Track List:

Johann Sebastian Bach - Chorale Preludes
01. Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, chorale prelude for organ (Schübler Chorale No. 1), BWV 645 (BC K22)
02. Nun komm der Heiden Heiland (II), chorale prelude for organ (Achtzehn Chorale No. 8), BWV 659 (BC K82)
03. Nun freut euch, lieben Christen gmein (I), chorale prelude for organ, BWV 734 (BC K125)
04. Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ (I), chorale prelude for organ (Orgel-Büchlein No. 41), BWV 639 (BC K68)

Felix Mendelssohn - Songs without Words for piano
05. Book 1, Op. 19b No.3
06. Book 6, Op. 67 No.2
07. Book 2, Op. 30 No.4
08. Book 1, Op. 19b No.1
09. Book 2, Op. 30 No.5
10. Book 3, Op. 38 No.3
11. No. 47 in A major ("Kinderstück"), Op. 102/5
12. Book 3, Op. 38 No.2
13. Book 3, Op. 38 No.2
14. Book 2, Op. 30 No.2
15. Book 6, Op. 67 No.1
16. Book 3, Op. 38 No.6
17. Book 6, Op. 67 No.4
18. No. 22 in F major, Op. 53/4
19. No. 26 in B flat major, Op. 62/2

Franz Liszt - Transcription for piano (after Franz Schubert)
20. Auf dem Wasser zu singen, S. 558/2 (LW A42/2)
21. In der Ferne, S. 560/6, (LW A49/6)
22. Ständchen, Leise flehen meine Lieder, S. 560/7 (LW A49/7)
23. Erlkönig (II), S. 558/4 (LW A42/4)

Performers:
Murray Perahia, piano