Œuvres pour piano Volume 3

Description

The third volume that the Acte Préalable label dedicates to the Polish composer brings together pieces from various repertoires. The piano scores are undoubtedly influenced by Chopin (mazurkas), but also by Tchaikovsky. It is true that Pachulski taught at the Moscow Conservatory and was in contact with both Scriabin and Rachmaninov, Goldenweiser, and Taneiev. The pieces, which alternate between piano, violin, cello, organ, and voice, reflect a catalog dedicated to "salon music." There is nothing pejorative in this term, which also alludes to the influence of French music so present in the circles of the upper bourgeoisie and Russian nobility. Thus, it is song that prevails in the Feuilles d’album, a Chanson triste, and Morceaux de fantaisie… The performers find the right tone and especially the muted and precise atmosphere to vary the colors of these charming pages. In one of them, for cello and piano, for example, one might think they hear Massenet or Saint-Saëns. It is also nostalgia that permeates all these pages, still tinged with Chopin's nocturnes. We are then on the eve of the first Russian revolution, and the passage of time reveals a sense of urgency. The performers, led by pianist Anna Mikolon, perfectly convey the ambiguous feelings of these pieces, which appear quite simple, and which are recorded here for the first time worldwide. (Jean Dandrésy)