Poetes du Piano – Pascal Roge, piano – Onyx 4057, 72:10 [Distr. by Harmonia mundi] ***:
Pascal Roge has long been a favorite pianist of mine, especially his work in Debussy, classic really, and it has been a while since I have had a chance to audition a new disc of his. This one from Onyx, with reasonable yet not sterling piano sound, is more like a lazy listening disc, one of those recitals that are meant to relax the nerves and sooth the soul, and it does this very well indeed. As for first class pianism among all composers represented I do have some issues.
As I said, Roge’s Debussy is beyond reproach, even standard-setting. His Faure Nocturne No. 1 is wonderful, and I would like to have had a disc full of nothing but. The whiff of Poulenc that we get is also appetizing for a larger course as well, and I felt cheated by only getting three of the eight of Ravel’s scintillating Valses nobles et sentimentales.
The problem is the Chopin. The notes tells us that Roge has never recorded any Chopin before in his life, which is amazing to me, as I am sure he has had to almost by compulsion play it in concert. But I am not sure that he has a real feeling for this composer; the rubato is almost bar-stopping in some instances, and you simply cannot pause and dwell on particular passages in the music of the Pole in the same way that you can in Debussy. Roge wants to savor each and every appealing phrase and melodic turn the way the Impressionists allow and it just doesn’t work the same way. I also detect some confusion in places as to which aspect of the music should be highlighted with the result that much of his Chopin does not sound like what you might be used to.
This is not bad playing—far from it, as Roge is incapable of that. But those wanting a first-class representation of Chopin should know that they will not get it here. Those wanting a sampling of Chopin from this particularly gifted pianist along with some excellent Debussy and others, suitable music for a calming evening will find much to savor.
TrackList:
1 FAURÉ (1845–1924): Nocturne no.1 in E flat minor op. 33 no. 1
2 CHOPIN (1810–1849): Nocturne no.13 in C minor op. 48 no. 1
3 POULENC (1899–1963): Nocturne no. 1 in C
RAVEL (1875–1937): Valses nobles et sentimentales
4 Modéré
5 Assez animé
6 Presque lent – dans un sentiment intime
7 CHOPIN: Waltz in C sharp minor op. 64 no. 2
8 CHOPIN: Étude in A flat op. 25 no.1
9 DEBUSSY: (1862–1918): Étude ‘pour les arpèges composées’
10 CHOPIN: Étude in C minor op. 10 no.12
11 DEBUSSY: Prélude (Book II) ‘Les fées sont d’exquises danseuses’
12 CHOPIN: Prélude in D flat op. 28 no.15
13 DEBUSSY: Prélude (Book I) ‘La fille aux cheveux de lin’
14 CHOPIN: Prélude in B minor op. 28 no. 6
15 DEBUSSY: Prélude (Book I) ‘Les Collines d’Anacapri’
16 DEBUSSY: Prélude (Book II) ‘Canope’
17 CHOPIN: Ballade no.4 in F minor op.52
— Steven Ritter
