L’ENFANCE
CLAIRE DÉSERT &
EMMANUEL STROSSER, Piano
Duet
Mirare 190 / *****
Composers have over the centuries sought to
relive memories of their formative years through simplicity and childlikeness
in music. Schumann’s Scenes from
Childhood and Debussy’s Children’s
Corner Suite for piano solo are good examples of this. In the piano duet
genre, the French have the field to themselves, represented by these four
works. Masterpieces in miniature may describe Gabriel Faure’s Dolly Suite, the seamless lyricism of its
Berceuse and Dolly’s Garden has rarely been matched. The 12 movements of Georges
Bizet’s Jeux d’enfants (Children’s Games) are also varied
delights, whether playing with toy soldiers (Trumpet and Drum), dolls (Little
Husband, Little Wife), spinning tops or bounding beach balls.
Both Debussy’s Petite Suite and Ravel’s Mother
Goose have orchestral versions which have become ballet spectaculars, but
it is the piano duets that remain true to the original spirit. The dances by
Debussy, which include a Cortege, Minuet and Ballet, sound more authentic in this guise. Best of all are Ravel’s
characterisations of Charles Perrault’s tales. Gamelan effects in Princess of The Pagodas, the gauche
waltz in Conversations of Beauty and the Beast, and the splashy glissandi
in The Fairy’s Garden bring out
orchestral effects, if only imagined. French pianists Claire Désert and
Emmanuel Strosser are well-known soloists in their own right, but together they
find an uncommon chemistry which makes these enchanting performances glitter
and come alive for all their innocence.
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