Reviewed by Simon Eden

The Professor of Composition at the Juilliard School gave specific instructions: to place a porcelain tea cup onto the strings of the piano, a metal sheet on the strings, and a rosined piece of string intertwined on one of the strings; then to play the piano with a stone guitar pick. The consequences can thus be described as progressing the definition of what can justifiably be called music, pushing the bounds of perceived wisdom with regards to what a piano is capable of. Any attempt to melt into the ambiance of a classical piano played with suitable technical brilliance is doomed to failure by techniques such as playing with forearms and elbows to the extent of requiring body armour to prevent injury. Defence against auditory injury may also be recommended. This is the debut solo recording of a holder of a Doctorate in piano performance and is a continuation of that theme, so better received as a piece of academic research. The only fair review must therefore be a peer review prior to publication in an academic journal. Listening to an entire collection of Japanese influenced pieces left me thinking I had been to a lecture where I did not have the basic appreciation of the subject.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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