CD Reviews (The Straits Times, March 2018)

EILEEN JOYCE

The Complete Studio Recordings

Decca Eloquence 482 6291 (10 CDs) / *****

Eileen Joyce (1908-1991), Britain’s glamour lady of the piano during the 1930s to 1950s, came from humble origins. She was born in Tasmania and spent her childhood years in Perth. She received formal musical studies in Leipzig, and later in London where she made her breakthrough. 

At her prime, she was known to play three or four piano concertos - each in different outfits - within a single concert. She however retired abruptly in 1960 from career burnout. Her studio recordings date from 1933 to 1958, and originally appeared on the Parlophone, Columbia, Decca, HMV and Saga labels. Now reissued by Universal Music Australia, these show her at her brilliant best.

She had a very large concerto repertoire, but recorded only a few, including those by Grieg, Mendelssohn (No.1), Tchaikovsky (No.2), Rachmaninov (No.2, she was the pianist on the sound track for the 1945 movie Brief Encounter), John Ireland and Shostakovich (No.1). The latter two concertos found in her an ardent champion. There is also a curious excursion into harpsichord territory, of which there are several J.S.Bach concertos for multiple keyboards to enjoy.

Joyce will be best remembered for playing short encore-like pieces, a genre where she was peerless. A 78 rpm shellac disc from 1933 which coupled Liszt's La Leggierezza and Paul de Schlozer's finger-twisting Etude in A flat major became an instant bestseller. She then made lots more shorts, all dictated by the four-and-a-half minute time limit per side. 

Forgotten pieces by d'Albert, Bergman, Pick-Mangiagalli, Farjeon, Stavenhagen, Cyril Scott and Friedman all get a deserved hearing. Her mercurial yet sensitive playing harks from a bygone age, and this box-set is a priceless listen.             

A SOIRÉE WITH BRYCE MORRISON / Part 1

The invitation to an evening 

of musical enchantment!

Three Young Virtuosi of Singapore PianoFest:
Lee Pei Ming (2006), Nicholas Loh (2009)
& Albert Lin (2007, from L)

Bryce Morrison celebrates the life 

of Australian diva of the piano Eileen Joyce 

with an illuminating illustrated talk, 

and finishing with a cautionary message.

Yao Xiaoyun, Young Virtuoso (2009) 

and 1st prizewinner of Piano Open category 2005, 

opened the evening with the
1st movement from Chopin's Sonata No.3.

Khoo Hui Ling, 1st prize winner of the 

YST Piano Concerto Competition 2009, 

performed Tchaikovsky's Dumka.

14-year-old Aileen Gozali 

gave a rare performance of Liszt's unfamiliar 

Hungarian Rhapsody No.4.

Au Kah Kay, a doctor in private practice,

polished off the Schubert-Liszt 

Soirées de Vienne No.6.

11-year-old Jonathan Chua did not find

Copland's Three Moods a great technical challenge.

Kelvin Chan, a scientist with A-Star, 

raised the roof with

Ravel's Scarbo from Gaspard de la nuit. 

BM looks more than

satisfied with his former student's work.