TURINA : Danzas fantásticas • Danzas gitanas • Danzas andaluzas (Jordi Masó) (2004) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Like his Spanish contemporaries de Falla, Granados, Albéniz, and Mompou, Joaquín Turina composed some of his most significant works for the piano; the full list of his keyboard works shows him to have been quite prolific. Yet because of his musical conservatism and allegedly reactionary politics, Turina has been somewhat less loved and less performed than his compatriots, and consequently less frequently recorded. Pianist Jordi Masó has begun recording Turina's complete piano works for Naxos, and this first volume presents two of his most important solo works, the Danzas fantásticas, Op. 22 -- later orchestrated -- and the Danzas gitanas, Opp. 55 and 84, along with several shorter sets of dance pieces. Turina's blending of poignant Andalusian-styled melodies, Impressionistic harmonies, and elaborate ornamental figurations give the music a delicate and slightly exotic quality, and these pieces pulse with strong dance rhythms and rhapsodic moods. As might be guessed from his vigorous playing and idiomatic interpretations, Masó is fully committed to this recording project and determined to bring Turina's music the attention he feels it deserves. However, listeners may find these pieces easier to appreciate in small doses, because hearing the disc in one sitting exposes the music's sameness of style and limited range of expression. Naxos offers fine sound quality. by Blair Sanderson
More About this Recording

Joaquín Turina (1882-1949)

1-3    Danzas Fantásticas (Fantastic Dances), Op. 22    15:30
4-6    Tres Danzas Andaluzas (Three Andalusian Dances), Op. 8    11:49
7-11    Danzas Gitanas (Gypsy Dances), Op. 55    13:03
12-16    Danzas Gitanas (Gypsy Dances), Op. 55    13:03
17-18    Dos Danzas Sobre Temas Populares Españoles, Op. 41    4:52
19-23    Bailete: Suite De Danzas Del Siglo XIX, Op. 79    11:13

Piano – Jordi Masó