Alexander Skliarov – Vocalise Alexander Skliarov, to my knowledge, has never appeared as a soloist in the USA; therefore, I have only known of him through his past recordings. Even so, I have heard of his musicianship and fine accordion playing from others who have heard him in person in Europe. This recording is exactly what I expected of him in that the playing is quite beautiful in every way. There is a refinement about each note and every phrase that makes the music exciting to hear and it makes me want to hear more from this very sensitive and thoughtful musician. This is not the fast-fingered display of technique. Instead, this is a performance of somewhat slower, thoughtful and exquisitely beautiful presentation of compositions quite representative of several fine composers. Some of the pieces are originally written for the bayan, others are well-crafted transcriptions. Skliarov makes the accordion sound absolutely superb. It will make all listeners yearn for the whole world to experience the accordion when handled in such an expert manner. Every musical selection is a gem. Oh, I know we expect the Scarlatti and the Rachmaninov to be fine music, but the accordion originals are also fine. No one could possibly object to any of this repertoire or to the performance of it. You will like this recording. You will truly enjoy hearing it over and over again. Buy it! www.alexanderskliarov.com Reviewed by Joan Cochran Sommers, December 2006 |
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