An American Excursion

Editorial Reviews
American Record Guide, Sep. 2003
"Rowley is a crisp, propulsive, highly rhythmic player, ideal for this repertory. By all means, grab this."

Fanfare Magazine, Sep. 2003
"Rowley conveys that particularly American sense with vivid power and palpable joy."

Album Description
Pianist Rick Rowley plays the witty, charming, jazzy and bluesy music of Richard Cumming, George Gershwin and Samuel Barber. The CD concludes with a brilliant piano transcription by Leonard Bernstein of Aaron Copland's enduring favorite "El Salon Mexico".

An American Excursion

Tracks:

Rustic Dance
Eastern Intermezzo
Colonial Song
Gay But Wistful
The Gum-Suckers' March
Vivace
Poco Adagio, Espressivo - Allegro - Poco Adagio
Presto
Andante
Allegro
Allegro
Andantino
Valse
Vivo
Introduction And 'Miller's Reel'
The Old Plunk
The Bundle Of Straw
He Piped So Sweet
Fill The Bowl
Pigeon On The Pier
Calder Pair
Salamanca And Coda
The Seagull
Polka
Summer Romance
Bicycle Parade
The Departure

Customer Reviews:

Terrible recorded sound.......2004-08-28

I just doubt the logic of this one...the tone and colour of the recording lacks depth and even bite...it as if one flattened the sound out and turned up the treble in the Engineering department.

As to the playing it is very fine but the recording sound is poor.

Average customer rating:

An American Beauty

An American Excursion

ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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General | Classical | Styles | Music

Album Description

Pianist Rick Rowley plays the witty, charming, jazzy and bluesy music of Richard Cumming, George Gershwin and Samuel Barber. The CD concludes with a brilliant piano transcription by Leonard Bernstein of Aaron Copland's enduring favorite "El Salon Mexico".

Customer Reviews:

An American Beauty.......2005-02-24

Rick Rowley is a pianist I'd never heard of before, but I was looking for a recording of Leonard Bernstein's piano arrangement of Copland's 'El Salón México' which, many years ago, used to be a party piece of mine. (It's great fun to play, and it's also great fun to hear.) I was not disappointed in this performance. Rowley is a kind of loose and easy pianist in the other pieces recorded here, clearly someone very comfortable and very familiar with these works--he obviously didn't just learn them for the recording--but in 'El Salón México' he is electric. Partly, of course, that's the piece and the arrangement, but over and above that he makes it sizzle.

Very familiar from other recordings (and from having played some of them myself) are Gershwin's 'Three Preludes' and Barber's 'Excursions.' Aside from a slightly languid opening to the First Prelude, Rowley's Gershwin is neatly done. I could have used a little more 'ritmico' in the Third, but that's a small matter. 'Excursions' suffers a little bit in comparison to Paul Jacob's classic recording, but on the other hand Rowley brings a spontaneity to them that Jacobs's precision doesn't convey, and that's particularly nice in the third of them, the one based on 'Streets of Laredo.'

In the 1960s Richard Cumming wrote the 'Twenty-Four Preludes' for American pianist John Browning. I'd never heard them, but certainly had heard OF them. The only music by Cumming I ever recall hearing was some of his songs, which were neatly done. This set of preludes, classically set in all twenty-four major and minor keys, is an utter delight and it sure sounds like Rowley delights in them, too. I would not, but for reading Rowley's informative notes, have realized that No. 2 had 'an internal pedal point on d and e-flat.' What one hears, actually, is a lovely harmonic haze around an achingly yearning melody. Although the entire set is predominantly tonal, Nos. 5 and 12, are based on twelve-tone rows and yet they manage to sound tonal to me. No. 4 is a torchy Debussy-cum-Bill Evans waltz. No. 21 is Bach-cum-John Lewis canon. No. 8 is for right hand alone; No. 22 for the left. No. 9 is a jaunty polyphonic take-off on the opening theme of Brahms's Second Piano Concerto. By now, perhaps, you can guess that Cumming is having a ball with his musical jokes and homages. This adds up to an extremely attractive set, and Rowley plays them sensitively and exuberantly.

So, even though I bought this CD completely blind, it turns out to be a major delight. Just goes to show you that sometimes you have to take a chance on the unknown!

TT=58:07

Scott Morrison