This light romantic collection ('Music of Seashore and Fjord') stands somewhere in the same region as Mayerl and John Ireland. The difference is that the composers are Swedish and their twilight gloss softens the 'scenery' with amber, motley and sepia.

The Färnlöf piece is regretful then lounge bar jazzy in the manner of Confrey and Mayerl with a touch of the dreamier Kapustin. The Ericson is a fetching impressionist piece (something of the pastel rockpool about it) with a Chopin flavour to its cantilena. The Skargardsskisser continues the mood but with more vigour. It is as if the tide has turned and the wind has freshened; Von Koch's Vaglek is similarly alive as is the Alfvén item although the heroic Grieg is the dominant influence here. Carl-Anton Axelsson's Överbyvals recalls a lost age of innocence common to many of these pieces. There are three Taube pieces of which Så skimrande and Nocturne are gentle wisps of songs sung breathily by Anna Nygren. The other Taube is Här Rosemarie which is similarly sentimental. The Carlsson's Arholmavalsen is humorous with a long introduction with notes picked out single finger evocative of the parlour then disrupted by strange bass intrusions thrown into the pool to create dissent. The majestic Medtnerian address of Nordqvist's Till Havs ends the disc.

This recital of Scandinavian piano stool nature favourites is a counterpart to those two extremely attractive Artworks piano recitals (Tamara Anna Cislowska) of Australia's early impressionists (Hutchens, Agnew, Lindley Evans, Hyde and Hill). There is a little more variety in this Proprius collection.

The notes are in Swedish and by the look of it do not give biographical information about the composers.

A collection of Scandinavian piano stool nature favourites: impressionistic, gracious watercolours pale with regret; fresh with innocence.

Rob Barnett

 

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