Reimagine: Beethoven & Ravel
Navona, 2021
8/10
Listen to Reimagine: Beethoven & Ravel
The piano genius Inna Faliks turns in an incredible interpretation of Beethoven and Ravel with Reimagine, where she brings ingenuity to classic compositions while still keeping the integrity of the originals intact.
“Bagatelle” starts the listen with agile and precise keys that flow with much beauty and grace, and “Bagatelle Opus 126 #1” follows with quick and intricate finger acrobatics as Faliks displays incredible flexibility.
Further on, “Bagatelle Opus #4” glides playfully, amid a bouncy spirit of frisky sounds, while “Sweet Nothings” moves sublimely alongside a cautious and elegant delivery. “Variations On A Spell”, the album highlight, then twinkles with a meticulous manipulation of keys as Faliks offers a dreamy, absorbing landscape.
Deeper yet, “Old Ground” emits a hypnotic quality that’s full of emotional song craft, and “Pursuit” exits the listen with both busy, even furious flashes, as well as calm moments of divine musicianship.
Nine modern day composers were brought in for this effort, including Richard Danielpour, Billy Childs and Timo Andres, to name a few, and together with Faliks’ technical prowess, they offer us Classical, Romantic and contemporary pieces that breathe new life into already exceptional music.
Travels well with: Carl Vollrath- Old & New Poetry; Ilja Hurník- Gratias