This is the seventh and final volume in Divine Arts' complete
solo piano music of Scottish composer Erik Chisholm, all performed
by Murray McLachlan. Previous volumes have all been warmly received
- see reviews of volume
1-4, volume
5 and volume
6. Volume 7 has itself also been reviewed (twice) here,
and piece-by-piece descriptions of the music can be found there.
At the foot of that page, furthermore, is a list of links to
various Chisholm-related items of interest.
In his booklet notes, Chisholm's biographer John Purser admits
that this final disc really only makes sense in the context
of previous volumes. As he aptly puts it: "we leave Chisholm's
music then, not with any grand gestures, modernist assertions,
Scottish determination or lyricism; but with unaffected, easy-going
and undemanding pleasures". Much has been written about
Chisholm's authentic credentials as a musician of and for Scotland,
particularly with regard to its ceòl mòr, but the pieces
on this CD are perhaps the least Scottish of any in the series.
An audition of any of the discs will leave no doubt that Chisholm
was a master of the piano miniature. Almost every work in these
seven volumes has been either brief - concise is better
- in itself or, where longer, consisting of smaller elements
in the form of suites, with individual movements often under
a minute long. The major exception is the Sonata in A 'An Riobain
Dearg', which featured on Volume 1, whilst the Sonatine Ecossaise
on Volume 5 constitutes another piano pillar exceeding the ten-minute
mark. Yet that is not to dismiss any of the miniatures themselves
as mere salon pieces or frivolities: the five Elegies, quasars
in piano form, are anything but that, and the Suites are jam-packed
with inventive, subtle and tantalising rhythms, harmonies and
effects, interestingly reminiscent often, as has been pointed
out by commentators, of Bartók, and perhaps Szymanowski.
It is hard to agree that sound quality here is "superb",
as reported by one of the previous reviewers of this disc -
"pretty good" would be more accurate, as the recording
equipment gives the impression of being the wrong side of the
open piano lid, and the piano itself does not sound quite in
tiptop condition. There is also a minor, momentary technical
blip at the end of track 21. The CD booklet however is neat
and informative.
As mentioned in a previous review, the Erik
Chisholm Trust describes the composer thus: "He is
also alone in his attempt to infuse into symphonic structure
the forms of Celtic music-lore (e.g. the pibroch) as distinct
from the introduction into present-day forms of merely discursive
Celtic atmosphere." That seems rather unfair on James MacMillan,
Eddie McGuire and a few others from the past century, including
Granville Bantock and William Wallace, and, outside Scotland,
Arnold Bax. Yet there is little doubt that Grant Covell's assertion
- prominent on the Trust's homepage - that "Erik Chisholm
is the most interesting 20th-century Scots musician you've never
heard of" has rung true for far too long. With luck, this
outstanding piano series will push things along and ultimately
lead to the recording of Chisholm's complete works. That would
give a big boost to Scotland's cultural heritage and add to
the musical treasures already turned up in Murray McLachlan's
marvellous recordings.
Byzantion
Collected reviews and contact at reviews.gramma.co.uk
See also reviews by John
France and Rob Barnett
Murray McLachlan (piano)
