Louisiana - A Pianist's Journey
WALTER NIEMANN (1876-1953): Louisiana Suite, Op. 97, ROY SPAULDING STOUGHTON (1884-1953): Louisiana Nights - Valse Creole, JOHN PARSONS BEACH (1877-1953): New Orleans Miniatures, FERDÉ GROFÉ (1892-1972): Mississippi Suite, LOUIS MOREAU GOTTSCHALK (1829-1869): La Savane - Ballade Creole, Op. 3, CEDRIC WILMONT LAMONT (1879-1954): Creole Sketches, Op. 15, ALBERT W. KETELBEY (1875-1959): Sweet Louisiana, VIRGIL THOMSON (1896-1989): Suite from Louisiana Story (transcr. Andor Foldes [1913-1992]).
Catalogue Number: 11M063
Label: Cambria
Reference: CD 1171
Format: CD
Price: $23.98
Description: Covering a period from 1847to 1949, this mid-price set offers a variety of piano music inspired by New Orleans, Louisiana and the Mississippi River. Of the three extended suites, only Niemann's uses non-original material (his is based on a set of Stephen Foster songs); Beach and Lamont blend European Romanticism with Creole and other Louisianan popular influences to produce attractive and original compendia of high-class salon music. Needless to say, Grofé and Thomson are here via piano versions of orchestral originals and the notes tell us that this is the first recording of Grofé's own original piano transcription of his orchestral suite. 2 CDs. Kenneth Boulton (piano).