Description
These three charming pianists have proven for years how 6-handed piano playing can link challenging interpretations of classical and contemporary pieces with visually and acoustically fun-filled performances – proven by the numerous television appearances, several audio recordings, concerts at home and abroad and prizes from international competitions. The trio have found and continue to find support in composers like Manfred Schmitz, Sergej Slonimsky, Jiannis Antonopoulos, Thomas Herrmann, Steffen Schellhase, Dmitri Pavlov, Arnold Fritzsch, Lidia Kalendareva, Alin Cristian Oprea and Qasim Ramazanov. The three pianists have worked on and performed several works by these composers.
con fuoco (with fire) – the title of the new album by SOME HANDSOME HANDS gets to the heart of the band’s nature – starting with an extrovert-virtuoso version of the “Säbeltanz” by Aram Khataschaturian and finishing with three pieces from a ballet of contemporary Russian composer Sergej Slonimsky, especially edited by him for the trio. In between, you will find, for example, the three grooving like a Caribbean band in “Salsa Rhythm” by the young composer Qasim Ramazanov.
With the enjoyment of an audio CD, you naturally lose out on the visual aspect. But if you have already seen the trio live, you will be able to recall the performance of the three spirited young ladies, whose joy in playing is just as easy to hear as to see, especially when you hear the ballet pieces by S. Slonimsky. Who is bothered if, over the course of the recording session, the intensity of it leaves its mark of the intonation of the piano!?
With con fuoco, SOME HANDSOME HANDS has succeeded in creating an album which has so much more to offer than simply fire and virtuosity. It’s not just the contemporary pieces which dazzle in a whole spectrum of colors. The excellent editing of the Hungarian Dances 1 to 10 (J. Brahms) refreshes the ears in a challenging way with things you may have already heard elsewhere. In this way, this album is also a pleasure for classical fans who otherwise wouldn’t spice up the kind of virtuosity typical of this genre with so much musical wit.
