Pedja Muzijevic - Sontatas & Other Interludes
For those of you who have not had the good fortune to hear him in concert or in fact know nothing about him - Pedja Muzijevic is a Bosnian born pianist, Who is known for his versatility and imaginative programing.
His interpretations of the standard literature have been widely praised, he has performed with orchestras and without world wide, and is now releasing a CD on Albany Records called “Sonatas & Other Interludes“
James Roe, who was lucky enough to get an advanced copy of this CD is all praise.
among other things this is what he says:
The ingenious conceit of this recital is its form. The title references Cage’s cycle “Sonatas and Interludes,” which groups 16 Scarlatti-sized sonatas interspersed with four interludes, all played on “prepared piano.” Pedja has chosen eight of Cage’s prepared-piano sonatas and places them between works (the “Other Interludes” of the title) by Scarlatti, Liszt, W. F. Bach, Schumann, Strauss, and a Chopin paraphrase by Michalowski. In this context, the Sonatas become the Interludes; those kind of inversions would certainly have delighted John Cage. In a surprising sense, the CD presents two recitals superimposed, which is not unlike the way Cage and Merce Cunningham worked.
As a musical programmer, I have been continually impressed by Pedja’s innate sense for contextualizing music of disparate periods in ways that compliment and enhance. Fans of his series, The Movado Hour, will have many memorable examples at the ready. In this recording, the tart, concision of Cage’s sonatas-not to mention the altered timbre of the “prepared piano”-acts as citrus palate cleansers between courses of a well-planned and well-executed meal.
To read more of what James Roe has to say go here.
You can pre-order your CD From Amazon here.
