| CD Program Britten Nocturnal Bach Chaconne Paganini Grand Sonata Ivanov-Kramskoi Gust, Prelude, Melancholy Waltz, Improvisation, Song without Words |
| "David Leisner is among the finest guitarists currently performing- and, given that the level of playing has never been higher, that means among the finest of all time. He has a probing intellect, finding insights in music that most others miss, and delivering them with a virtuoso technique. He is a musician first, a guitarist second, and that is a rare quality." American Record Guide David Leisner's technically immaculate and musically mindful interpretation of Britten's Nocturnal can hold its own with Julian Bream's two reference versions...His arrangement of the Bach Chaconne manages to take full advantage of the guitar's resources without compromising the original's formal design and cumulative sweep. One can say that about Leisner's interpretation, which is characterised by tightly knit tempo relationships and intelligently scaled dynamics...All told, an immensely satisfying and thoughtfully put-together programme that should please all guitar fans." Gramophone, UK "May well be one of the top guitar discs for an Earth Time Capsule." CVNC Online Arts Journal "What distinguishes him is the consistency of his approach to the repertoire, following only his inner voice. It could be said that he cares only to be true to himself, without being influenced by anything else...Not even in the theatricality of Paganini does Leisner fall prey to the temptation of displaying his technical virtuosity. Using only the technique that is necessary to calibrate the musical expression, he makes virtuosity disappear." Suonare, Italy "David Leisner’s latest solo recital disc, Favorites, is a consistently enjoyable program of repertory favorites and lesser known short works for classical guitar... Leisner wrings considerable poignancy from its [Bach Chaconne's] wrenching harmonic passages and its long-breathed melodies... The guitarist wisely avoids maudlin tempi or syrupy rubati, instead allowing the piece to unfold at a gradual but constant pace; making for a dignified rather than overly sentimental rendering... Leisner is also impressive in his transcription of Nicolo Paganini’s Grand Sonata, delivering a crisply fleet- fingered rendition that favors clarity and bright articulation to the flashily mercurial (but sloppy) showiness of some other interpreters...Ivanov-Kramskoi isn’t nearly as well known to Western audiences as he should be, and pieces like “Melancholy Waltz” and “Song Without Words” are considerably charming." Sequenza21.com Excerpt from David Leisner's liner notes: This is a very personal album. It contains some of my favorite music that can be played on the guitar. In the case of the three major works on the program - the Britten Nocturnal, Bach Chaconne and Paganini's Grand Sonata - it is music I have lived with for most of my classical guitar-playing life, music that I have returned to again and again, broadening and, hopefully, deepening my interpretation of them each time. Bach's Chaconne and Britten's Nocturnal are among the loftiest artistic creations in history. An interpreter can only be humble in their presence, hoping to touch at least a piece of their far-reaching souls. The five short pieces by Ivanov-Kramskoi are newer to me and will be new to most listeners as well. Their lyric beauty and passion have made them become fast friends and new favorites of mine. Full review by Angelo Gilardino for the Italian magazine, Suonare: Azica Records is an American record label, based in Cleveland, which has great faith in the guitarist David Leisner. For years, in fact, it has been producing all the solo CDs of this artist. I say “artist” because this is the correct definition of Leisner, a character we might encounter in the pages of the great New York writers of our time. The fact that he is a guitarist is just a detail, a part of his being a metropolitan artist, nourished by the culture of the Big Apple, with its everyday life, its happenings, its unique lifestyle, without equal even in the United States. Of that world, we know the writers, the film directors, the talent scouts, the gallery owners, the agents...David Leisner is one of them, one of the very few guitarists who is part of New York’s cultural scene. A faculty member at the Manhattan School of Music (together with Delpriora and Starobin), he is a concert musician able to hold a dialogue with the most revered North American composers and to perform their music with great understanding. Above all, what distinguishes him is the consistency of his approach to the repertoire, following only his inner voice. It could be said that he cares only to be true to himself, without being influenced by anything else. His most original season has been that lived with the Viennese music of the 19th century. He has given us Mertz and Schubert-Mertz of extreme refinement (perhaps to a fault), and then, going back even further, a vital and spirited Matiegka, enriched with a charm that no one had ever seen in the music of that somewhat hypochondriacal composer. In those recordings, Leisner has left a very clear impression of his style as an interpreter, completely different from the European tradition. There is no trace whatsoever of even the most remote influence of Segovia or Bream. His references may be found in the artistry of the North American pianists, from Rudolf Serkin to Leon Fleisher, on whose models Leisner has shaped his wise phrasing, charged with expression, but also filtered by an elaborate intellectual scrutiny. A guitarist for the few? I believe the readers of Paul Auster or the most sophisticated New York art collectors would have no hesitation: if they are in the mood to listen to a CD of guitar music, they choose Leisner. The most recent page of his musical diary is not afraid of venturing into new territory. On the contrary, it relishes the challenge. It is an unusual CD, even for him. He called it “Favorites”. But who is choosing these musical favorites? An emerging artist? A veteran? And whom is he favoring? Leisner finds himself – like the title of his solo guitar sonata - “nel mezzo”, that is, in that age when one starts organizing the data of what will later become the assessment of one’s own existence. He is looking back, observing his own history as an interpreter. For this new CD, he chooses the strongest and most significant composition of every important musical period and tied that piece to the figure of an interpreter that has left an indelible mark on it. He pays homage to these figures in the booklet, with notes called“Dedications”. But he plays these emblematic pieces his own way, without referring stylistically to those interpretive masters. We are talking about the Chaconne by Bach, the Grand Sonata by Paganini and the Nocturnal by Britten. Leisner is able to make his interpretation of these works useful precisely because they have nothing to do with what we already know about them. It seems, while listening- and the feeling is further reinforced when listening again - that the guitarist has imagined an audience that loathes any manifestation of the ego and that expects from the interpreter complete transparency in utter oblivion of the corporeal self. Let’s be very clear – this is the opposite of anonymity. It is rather the exposition in full light of what an interpreter can do if he or she focuses exclusively on revealing and not demonstrating. Not even in the theatricality of Paganini does Leisner fall prey to the temptation of displaying his technical virtuosity. Using only the technique that is necessary to calibrate the musical expression, he makes virtuosity disappear. The Chaconne is narrated like a story, and while the narration unfolds it reveals an architectural blueprint, traced with authority and soft hands, without a hint of bombast. The Nocturnal is stripped of any histrionics, and resembles instead a soliloquy in which the action is replaced by remembrance. Leisner adds, in a purely autobiographical vein, music of the Russian guitarist-composer Alexander Ivanov-Kramskoi. We forgive him for this, but hope that this is the last time. Full review by Roger Cope for the CVNC Online Arts Journal: The enduring and artistically mature David Leisner has produced a highly personal recording of his favorite works for guitar. After a lifetime of playing, studying, listening and honing each to his personal perfect aural image, the result is a program that may well be one of the top guitar discs for an Earth Time Capsule. The program is a bone crushing excursion through major repertoire for guitar, and represents something of a personal triumph. There are two huge sets of variations by Britten and Bach, a three movement Paganini Grand Sonata, and tasty morsels by Russian guitarist/composer Alexander Ivanov-Kramskoi. To go Big at the beginning it is safe to say Britten's Nocturnal is simply very big art. It is for only the very hungry and familiar and any sit-down experience with this piece – on either side of the instrument – is only for the big dogs. This reading is one of the most well defined and balanced I have heard live or recorded, including the debut by its dedicatee Julian Bream who Leisner credits as a major influence. It is clear each component part has been studied for its relationship to John Dowland's dark and brooding "Come, Heavy Sleep," the main theme which appears at the end rather than beginning. Leisner's Bach is circumspect and often sneaky while deeply respectful of the period, style and origin of this monument to musical intellect. This arrangement (original was for violin) has echoes of the historic setting by Andres Segovia (note we've come to the point where we give both names instead of the iconic single moniker "Segovia."), particularly in the bass line, and this is relevant because we hear that version less often now. The "arrangement" pendulum has swung, now resting comfortably in restraint; CW suggests we're better off trusting the composer's score instead of adding notes or doublings in support. But Leisner has his own additions, omissions and twists that refresh the ear and work to stamp this reading as his own. The experience is still spiritually fulfilling, and should rank among preferred recordings. The three-movement Paganini Grand Sonata is a guitar-solo setting of the original scored for guitar and violin, and is a typical classic/romantic work given great definition with well articulated accompaniment and clear, singing melody lines. Polyphony in this period thrives on restraint requiring a deft hand on the throttle. Harmonic tension and release is the primary device, and all the right touches are in place for a fairly predictable, straight forward and balanced model of the era. Themes are abundant and tuneful. The middle movement Romanza includes a fertile approach-to-second-theme cadenza; and the third movement variations include all the fireworks we expect from the great violin virtuoso. The Russian guitarist/composer Ivanov-Kramskoi (1912-73) shows command of harmony and structure, but is clearly most at home in creation of bel canto melody; no doubt a reflection of his long association with singers. Obviously a romantic at heart his works lay on the guitar in a way that suggests no other instrument would be a fitting voice. The vigorous repeated-chord Gust, a stylistically punctuated Waltz, and a Chopin-esque Prelude are elegant works from the five on this disc. All display great poise and stature while surrounded by the guitar's more imposing repertoire. I first heard Leisner in 1975 when he was a young competitor and finalist in the Guitar 75 International Competition in Toronto. At that time he was clearly an individualistic programmer pointed in a slightly oblique direction from most other guitarists, but a fine performing career was clearly in the offing. Then, he was surprised by a case of focal dystonia at mid career. It has been talked about, and he has talked about it. His solution was to conquer and continue, which he has done, and while it remains a part of his life that part of the story is past. I last heard Leisner perform at La Guitarra California Festival in 2009 where a less than optimum hall could not mask his current full bloom. Now, this landmark recording is testimony to not only his remarkable and thoughtful artistry but his persistence and patient rehabilitation and recovery techniques as well. He is a survivor on the American music scene, listeners are the beneficiaries, and his legacy is still unfolding. |