while preserving

Couperin: 45 Pieces for Piano
$31.99
I know next to nothing about the keyboard music of Fran���ois Couperin. When I was a kid pianist I ran across some pieces by him, tried them, got my fingers snagged on the ever-present ornaments and never went back to them. Over the years I have heard bits and bobs of his keyboard works but never really put much effort into knowing more about them. When this 2CD collection came my way I was ready, apparently, to learn more. Fortunately, Ray McIntyre, the pianist/harpsichordist here, wrote very informative booklet notes. Indeed, he indicates that one of his purposes with this set was 'to introduce the intermediate student of the piano or of the harpsichord ... to the challenge of learning fundamental techniques of keyboard performance from the works of a poorly understood master who stood at the beginning of our modern era, systemized an aesthetic method, introduced the concept of studying etudes, revolutionized the appearance of engraved folios of music and founded the genre of the composer-pianist ... [but] the general music lover need not absorb the didactic detail presented in these notes in order to revel in the passion and tenderness of these pieces.'

McIntyre arranged these forty-five short pieces, taken from the more than 200 Couperin wrote, in order of increasing difficulty. All of them present technical difficulties if only because of those ornaments I mentioned. But as we traverse the collection it is clear that textures become denser, tempi quicker and the necessity for differentiation of touch more insistent. McIntyre's playing demonstrates how it should be done.

But more important to the casual listener is the impact of the music itself. These are brief pieces -- interestingly no timings are listed -- that charm with their melodies, their almost conversational impact; it is as if each piece is describing a scene. The titles of the individual pieces help with that -- 'The Bees'; 'Cupid's Fatal Arrows'; 'The Little Windmills'; 'The Convalescent'; 'The Carillon at Cythera'; 'The Nightingale in Love,' etc. The final piece, the longest of the collection, called 'Triumph' is in the form ABACADA and depicts preparing for battle, a fanfare, combat, 'joy of the victors.'

Most of the pieces are played on a Bl���thner piano whose treble has special tuning: a fourth string for each note in the treble is set to vibrate sympathetically at either 4' or 8' pitch, similar to the tuning of a harpsichord. The result is an exceedingly sweet-toned piano sound that is somewhere between a modern piano and a harpsichord. A couple of pieces are played on piano and then on harpsichord, showing interesting contrast.

McIntyre is a sensitive player. At first I felt his performance suffered from tempo instability until I realized that he was responding to the emotional needs of each piece as well as the necessity of giving the often extraordinarily complex ornaments their due. As I became used to this the music took on a more deeply-felt tone that made listening to them more pleasurable. As McIntyre says in his notes, the complexity of the music itself is not immediately perceived by the casual listener because they are beguiled by the charm of Couperin's melodic skill, and that certainly is true. So, this is music the repays both casual and more attentive listening, one of the hallmarks of greatness.

Recommended.

2CDs: 147+mins

Scott Morrison

The Supreme Court and Sexual Harassment: Preventing Harassment While Preserving Free Speech
$75.00
The issue of sexual harassment has received considerable attention in recent years. As responses to this problem have evolved--Paul I. Weizer argues--free speech and due process have become increasingly threatened. Because the Supreme Court has given little guidance, confronting harassment has been difficult and haphazard. "The Supreme Court and Sexual Harassment" examines the crux between limiting workplace speech and preventing sexual harassment. Weizer argues that the courts need to clarify further the meaning of sexual harassment, and employers need to clarify their own and their employees' speech and due process rights in the workplace. The book offers a lucid examination of how the First Amendment has evolved in the past century, an investigation of comparative areas of unpopular speech, and an analysis of how sexual harassment precedent has developed. Weizer concludes with a proposal for a less restrictive alternative that would prevent true harassment while preserving free expression. Adding another strong voice to the debate on sexual harassment in America, this is an important book for our time.

While the Animals Leave His Ark Noah Gives Thanks to God for Preserving Him from the Flood Art Giclee Poster Print, 16x12
$39.99
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Living Through Breast Cancer: What a Harvard Doctor and Survivor Wants You to Know about Getting the Best Care While Preserving Your Self-Image [LIVING THROUGH BREAST CANCER]
$18.95