FEDERICO MOMPOU: Musica Callada; “Secreto” – Jenny Lin, piano – Steinway & Sons

FEDERICO MOMPOU: Musica Callada; “Secreto” from Impresiones intimas – Jenny Lin, piano – Steinway & Sons 30004, 74:21 ****:
Mompou’s Musica Callada—“Silent Music”—is a very large piano work, four books containing a total of 28 pieces ranging from less than a minute to almost five. The musical language is sedate, simple, quiet, and without artifice. The time of its premiere, 1974, was not fortuitous to general acceptance as the academic elites were choking on rampant modernism, and forcing a whole generation of composition students to choke on it as well. Even the inroads of the “anti-modernists”, beginning with Terry Riley’s In C were not enough to pave the way for the beauties of Mompou’s conception.
Comparisons are often made to Satie, but he was a composer steeped in stasis, while Mompou does move, albeit cautiously and without fanfare. But Satie often smiles, even broadly when engaged in a large musical practical joke, and Mompou is deadly serious. I think this is the one thing that so deadens some responses to this piece. And to be fair, it is not the most consistent in musical inspiration; sometimes Mompou’s supposed channeling of things divine into his music makes one question just how mystical the process really is. The divine is never boring, and there is a lot of boring stuff in this piece, which is much better sampled parts at a time unless you happen to be really awake and in a really meditative mood.
But if you are Jenny Lin is your gal; she knows the music inside out and is able to provide a very persuasive take on it. Her tone is warm and rich while still clear and very concise, something needed in music that relies so heavily on contrast and balance. If this is your thing, don’t hesitate, and there are rewards to be had.
—Steven Ritter