LEO ORNSTEIN (1893-2002): Fantasy Pieces Nos. 1-3, 3 Tales, Metaphors Nos. 1, 3, 8, 9, 11 & 16, A Morning in the Woods, Solitude, To a Grecian Urn.

Description: This recital contains music from the other end of Ornstein's long career, when he increasingly turned to melody and consonance, and only two of them have even ever been performed by anyone, much less recorded. The earliest piece apparently (some have no dates) is the 1959 Metaphor No. 1 and the latest Solitude of 1978. These are generally song-like, lyrical pieces with a sense of improvisatory freedom (especially in the Metaphors) but the Morning in the Woods has a marked feel of Impressionism à la Griffes and the Three Tales (1977) are very virtuosic and harmonically adventurous, recalling the phantasmagorical atmosphere of Ravel's Gaspard. Very intriguing music from a very unusual and remarkable composer. Sarah Cahill (piano).