Conceived on a less grand scale than the preceding Nocturnes, Fauré's Nocturnes 8-10 are in turn contemplative, ambiguous and passionate, while Ravel's ravishing Jeux d'eau celebrates the playful divine laughter of antiquity, in homage to Liszt's Jeux d'eau de la Villa d'Este. As so often with Ravel, he looks to the past to create epoch-making departures in piano-writing and its dedication to his 'dear master, Gabriel Fauré' underlines the contrast between the two composers.
Robin Holloway's Scherzo alla Ciaconna is at once mysterious, fascinating, and relentlessly obsessive.
Fauré's three Barcarolles nos 5-7 are strongly contrasting, both in scale and in content. Epic narration set against stillness, in turn stormy navigation and a tranquil boat trip.
more about David Christophersen
Oslo-born David Christophersen, is Artistic Director of the Cambridge Concert Series at West Road Concert Hall has performed throughout the UK including at the Woburn Abbey Festival, Bristol St George's, Edinburgh's Reid Hall, Oxford's Hollywell Music Room, London's St John's Smith Square, broadcast for BBC Radio 3. Recent projects have included premieres of new solo and chamber works by Jeremy Thurlow, Maria Ptaszynska and Robin Holloway, performances with Marie-Noelle Kendall of Holloways monumental 'Gilded Goldbergs and a tour with Prokofiev's War Sonatas.
