Search - Zez Confrey, Eteri Andjaparidze :: Confrey: Piano Music

Zany yet poetic!

Bob Zeidler | Charlton, MA United States | 09/04/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Once again, in its "American Classics" series, Naxos has pulled a pleasant surprise rabbit out of the hat. Zez Confrey must be a new name for virtually everyone, unless they are well past my own age, and I don't go back quite that far. The name was certainly new for me, but a few of the pieces on this disc brought memories flooding back, most likely because my parents once had them coupled on an ancient 78 shellac.



Confrey (1895 - 1971) had been relegated pretty much to the dustbin of history before this release. But he did have his days in the sun between the two world wars. Undoubtedly his brightest moment was when he shared billing with George Gershwin and Paul Whiteman on the occasion of the premiere for Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, where Confrey had the stage in the first half of the concert and Gershwin in the second. For the most part, after that February, 1924 "An Experiment in Modern Music" concert of Whiteman's, the paths of Gershwin and Confrey began to diverge; Gershwin was, to put it simply, an overnight success.



All of the music on this album is fun, and virtually all of it demands virtuosic pianistic ability, which Confrey must certainly have possessed. Listening to it is like taking a trip down memory lane, back to the popular music in the first third of the previous century. There are pieces which have clear roots in ragtime, embellished upon and brought forward by a few decades, and at least a selection or two which sound very much like Gershwin preludes in their "bluesy" feel. It's also clear that Confrey was not unaware of the classical music of the period, because a few of the pieces capture the idioms of the piano music of Rachmaninoff and Ravel of that period (although they soon veer off into "Confrey territory"). If you listen carefully, you'll even hear a passing reference or two to Chopin. But, like the Rachmaninoff and Ravel musical allusions, these too are in fact just "passing references."



But most of the album is pure Confrey-style pianistic wizardry: Fleet fingers, crossing hands, syncopations and rhythmic "irregularities" with the colorfully descriptive titles of "Meandering", "Coaxing the Piano" and "Stumbling." And his two most famous pieces (which, probably, many of us have never heard), "Kitten on the Keys" and "Dizzy Fingers." (In fact, it was "Dizzy Fingers" and "Stumbling" which must have been the coupling on that ancient 78, because they were immediately recognizable.)



Eteri Andjaparidze is an excellent technician in this work, which can be very demanding of technique if it is to be pulled off properly. By and large, she does very well by it. In particular, she succeeds in capturing the passing allusions to the classical piano music of the time. If I had my druthers, I might ask for a little more panache, or insouciance, if you like, in the Confrey specialities noted in the previous paragraph. But who can quibble, especially at the Naxos price, without appearing to be a piker?



Neat stuff for a refreshing change of pace, with an opportunity to hear an hour's worth of music by someone who had been ignored for too long. That's a "get it" recommendation!



Bob Zeidler"

Brilliant!

Russel E. Higgins | 03/22/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have no idea what Jason Verlinde meant by saying that Eteri Andjaparidze sounds "a tad robotic" on certain pieces on her new Zez Confrey album; indeed, the Republic of Georgia pianist sounds absolutely marvelously free in her interpretations. I cannot hear anything "robotic" at all in her playing. She approaches the intricate syncopations of Confrey's music with dazzling style. She is technically proficient enough to take Confrey's tempi at a furious pace, when necessary, in pieces such as "Kitten on the Keys" and "Dizzy Fingers," and to create a sustained, beautiful flow to the music in such "impressionistic" pieces as "Sparkling Waters" and "Mighty Lackawana." The selections which will remind the listener of Art Deco New York in the 1920's and 1930's, are taken at exactly the right tempo, and Ms. Andjaparidze syncopates the rhythms in a sparkling manner. I was utterly amazed at how a pianist, trained in the Republic of Georgia, could evoke the rhythms and style of American music of this type. But she does! In addition, the piano has been recorded beautifully, with sparkling tone at the treble end, and a rich, full bass. I purchased this CD a few hours after reading Frank Behrens' review. It is a wonderful addition to my collection of American music. I urge you to hear this excellent release. Naxos is to be commended for making it available."

THE SOUND OF YOUNG 20TH CENTURY AMERICA

F. Behrens | Keene, NH USA | 03/02/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"First of all, the name in the title of the Naxos release (8.559016) is not a typo. This latest addition to the fabulous American Classics series has been nominated for a top award and I have lost track how many times I've played it since it arrived. Noted mostly for his "Kitten on the Keys," which Paul Whiteman immortalized in that famous concert that gave birth to "Rhapsody in Blue," Confrey led a musical life nicely outlined in the liner notes provided by Naxos. The music itself spans the years 1921-35, then jumps to a 1959 piece that makes us want more of the works that came in between. You will instantly recognize the influence of Joplin and Gershwin in many of these pieces, not to mention Jelly Roll Morton here and there. Indeed one of the pieces (you listen for it yourself) comes very close to Gershwin's homage to Chopin, the "Prelude No. 2." But Confrey has his own voice and pianist Eteri Andjaparidze, from the far off Republic of Georgia, is a fine interpreter. Finally at the Naxos budget price, you can purchase several to give as thoughtful gifts to anyone you know who loves good music."