Search - George Gershwin, Edvard Grieg, Franz Liszt :: Rhapsody in Blue for two at one piano

Mmmmmmmm

02/17/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In this age of heavily digitized music, how refreshing to hear such gifted classically-trained musicians evoking the unmistakable sounds of piano music being played in a recording studio on a real piano. You wouldn't want to digitize this reality-- you'll want to savor every reverberation of the strings, hammers and sounding board. No small wonder the British Press calls this pair the "Lenti Twenty"; more than just their timing, the connectedness of their combined musicianship is so elegant, so seamless, really-- these two truly do play one keyboard as if they are one incredible pianist with 20 unbelievably nimble --and powerful-- fingers. (I immediately went online to see what else they have recorded and "found my thrill" when I lucked out and found their CD, I Found My Thrill, featuring Blueberry Hill and other great music from the 30s and 40s, as well as 2 volumes of Forgotten Piano Duets.) The Grieg, Liszt and Shubert on the Rhapsody CD, all beautifully romantic and transporting, were a pleasant surprise, since I was not familiar with them and was drawn to buy the CD because of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and the Hungarian Rhapsody, which I also love. The Lenti's version of the Gershwin is so lush and rich, it sounds as if it was scored for a movie soundtrack; hard to believe this is just one instrument! Incidentally, this married couple plays this one seated side-by-side at one piano, aka "four hands" in the lexicon of duet piano music, and not "two piano," with each seated at separate pianos (facing each other), as much of their other recorded piano music. Given the exquisite musical rapture created by this union of paired virtuosos, sharing one piano bench, one can only imagine what the Rhapsody in Blue practice sessions were like in the Lenti's private studio... with this amount of "fourplay," one hopes the shades were drawn. . ."

A Performance to erase stress!

10/11/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have heard the Lenti Piano Duo in concert, and bought this album after hearing their very entertaining concert, or should I say show? The two rhapsodies, one the famous Rhapsody in Blue--the other famous Second Hungarian Rhapsody of Liszt are my favorites. The last one I remember from Bugs Bunny cartoons, but this concert version sounds difficult, and this duo really moves their twenty fingers.. As for the Gershwin, all I can say is pour yourself a cool drink from the kitchen, go to your room and stretch out nice and relaxed, and let the music kind of wash over you. Tthis piece seemed really long to me when I heard it with an orchestra once. But here, I stayed tuned in. I heard things I missed before. Clear and clean, cool and jazzy. But then I read the program notes, and found out that Tony Lenti's grandfather wrote "Blueberry Hill". So maybe classical and jazz are just in the family. Let's see. The Tarantella is a hoot. Non-stop Italian energy that needs retro rockets to stop. And then I really fell in love withthe last piece, , the Schubert F Minor Fantasy. It is so romantic, not rushed. Just kind of takes its time being beautiful. Gets pretty stormy too. Maybe you want to call a special person over before you settle back! The Schubert takes me where I want to go. Hint: I listened with my eyes closed.."

Played from the Heart

defragged2 | San Jose, CA | 10/16/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Technically, I'm not a musician, though as a trained dancer in my youth, I suppose I am sensitive to music. Frankly, I bought this because of the artwork on the cover, which is so romantic, with the 20's style drawing of the dancing couple near the exotic waterside, straight out of F. Scott Fitzgerald. But I tried the disc as many of us do, on a long ride to work one day. These performers are so at one with the music on this disc, you hear it from the heart. And for that moment, you can breathe a bit slower, take time to notice the beauty around you, even if it's just one chink of blue sky as you glimpse above the traffic. And the variety on this album is great. From jazzy Gershwin to fingers-flying Liszt to that final Fantasie by Schubert. The Schubert is my going home song. I never heard it before this, and now am I hooked. You don't need to know anything about it to fall in love with it. It really sounds like one person playing, it is so sincere, and moving: played from one heart, it would seem. I recommend it for subliminal de-stressing. I would take it in and listen on my living room equipment, but if I forgot to bring it in the car, I'd make myself late rushing back in to get it. Can't get the day going without it, now. Even my boss seems to like me better when I get there---nah, I just probably feel a lot less stressed and more relaxed. I'm easier to get along with in that state!"