Highly publicized, mass-marketed classical music acts tend to get my goat and fuel my cynicism. For example, when I received The 5 Browns second CD release, with its wholesome, plastically hip booklet photos, dorky, air-headed annotations, and wishful-thinking title, I automatically tossed it in my de-collection bag on top of Vanessa Mae, Linda Brava, David Helfgott, the Three Tenors Sing Prince, Liberace plays late Beethoven, and the latest chapter in Lang Lang’s downward artistic spiral.
A few days later, morbid curiosity kicked in. I retrieved the disc and put it on. And wouldn’t you know it? These five brothers and sisters really can play! True, their five-piano version of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue is slightly cut and has its fill of arch, mannered phrasings. But what impressive ensemble precision and instrumental balances! The same goes for the Browns’ “readers digest” reduction of Stravinsky’s 1911 Firebird, plus a medley of Aaron Copland’s Simple Gifts and the “Going Home” theme from Dvorák’s New World Symphony that just might edge John Ashcroft’s “Let the Eagle Soar” from No. 1 on the flag-waving Hit Parade.
If the expertly rehearsed synchronicity Desirae and Deondra Brown achieve in Ravel’s “Feria” from Rapsodie espagnol lacks a rhythmic center and palpable sensuality, the sisters’ incisive though slightly overloud romp through Lutoslawski’s Paganini Variations compensates. Melody Brown sparkles in a selection from Lowell Liebermann’s ultra-clever yet derivative Gargoyles. By contrast, John Novacek’s Full Stride Ahead (Rag) mixes 1920s novelty piano and stride licks into an original, unpredictable 90-second brew. Gregory Brown plays the heck out it, and I only wish that his Liszt Sixth Rhapsody had steadier rhythm, stronger bass lines, and less fussy phrasing–oh yes, and Argerich’s octaves!
Gregory appears to be the flashy brother, while Ryan’s more the poet and colorist, at least from how he shapes the more virtuosic of Ginastera’s Danzas Argentinas Op. 2 so that they sing and dance rather than shock and awe. The brothers’ diverse styles mesh well for a sensitive rendition of Lecouna’s Malaguena, in Grace Helen Nash’s venerable two-piano arrangement. In all, this is an enjoyable disc, with something for everyone. But if the Browns seriously want to cultivate a “No Boundaries” image, perhaps a programming and repertoire consultant can take them to the next level. In other words, turn the Osmonds into the Osbornes… [4/6/2006]
