Why transcribe Vivaldi’s ubiquitous Four Seasons for solo piano when a gazillion recordings of the orchestral original can be had? That’s a question pianist and transcriber Jeffrey Biegel eloquently addresses in the booklet notes he provides for his own performance. In essence, Biegel elaborates upon and embellishes the unaccredited solo-piano Four Seasons arrangement published by Ricordi with a keen sense of style and keyboard deployment. His vivacious, gorgeously detailed, thoroughly committed, and beautifully engineered piano playing constantly delights.
The wealth of tone color Biegel squeezes from the endless violin trills in high registers precludes any danger of the music turning percussive or tinkly, while rapid repeated notes and double notes effortlessly fall from his fingers (the G minor’s Presto is quite a tour-de-force in this regard). Listen also to how adroitly Biegel weighs the dissonances in the F minor first movement’s churning accompaniment.
Andrew Gentile’s two concerto transcriptions are no less effective, mainly due to Biegel’s ear for detail, such as the varied articulations and dynamic contrasts he brings to echoed passages (the C major mandolin concerto’s finale, for example). What easily could have been a gimmick turns out to be no less than one of 2009’s most enjoyable piano recordings. Don’t judge it before you hear it!
