RRO20 (rec: 2003)

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notes © 2010 Redcliffe recordings

Francis Routh
24 Preludes for piano , Op.77

Played by Charles Matthews

Listen to the music here first by freely downloading a sound - sample of four preludes:

1 Prelude VI Vivace 1.12 streaming sample
2 Prelude VII Sostenuto 3.50 streaming sample
3 Prelude VIII Allegro moderato 1.41 streaming sample
4 Prelude X Con moto 4.03 streaming sample

These preludes use today’s scale of extended tonality in the same way that Bach used the diatonic scale in his 48 Preludes and Fugues (The Well-Tempered Clavier). Many 19th / 20th century composers have added to the classical tradition of piano music by writing 24 Preludes, most notably Chopin, Debussy and Shostakovich.

Review (Rob Barnett)