Two world premieres from composer
Christian Schittenhelm highlight this album by the husband-and-wife duo of conductor
Sergey Neller and pianist
Svetlana Andreeva. The album title
Air is taken from the subtitle to
Schittenhelm's
Piano Concerto No. 4, which leads the program.
Andreeva is familiar with the works of this composer, having presented a program of his solo piano works for her 2023 recording debut,
Synesthesia. The concerto offers an interesting blend of the composer's influences, from 20th century French composers to film music and his background as a pianist.
Schittenhelm's chromatic usage and orchestral scoring is juxtaposed with the solo piano, creating unique harmonies, though there are times it seems as though there are too many ideas developing independent of the whole, so it comes off a bit disjointed.
Schittenhelm's symphonic poem
Dawn is rightly evocative of daybreak and is harmonically challenging while not departing from tonality entirely. This work is more cohesive and a window into the composer's harmonic language. The album closes with perennial favorite and rightfully "airy"
Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune ("
Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun") by
Debussy. One wonders if the program could have been filled out further; there are certainly plenty of works for orchestra, solo piano, or piano and orchestra that fit the album's theme. ~ Keith Finke