Jamaican Rumba: Volume One: Arthur Benjamin: Piano Music

The works included here are not among [Benjamin's] larger, 'serious' works; they are all character pieces, and many of them rely on popular music for their idiom. The Rumba of the title is one... — American Record Guide More…

Catalogue No: TP105
Label: Tall Poppies

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Benjamin, A: Jamaican Rumba

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Scherzino

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Siciliana

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Chinoiserie - Gavotte and Musette

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Suite

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Fantasies I

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Pastorale, Arioso and Finale

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Fantasies II

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Saxophone Blues

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: New Fantasies (3)

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Romance-Impromptu

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Odds & Ends I

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Haunted House

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Odds & Ends II

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Let's go hiking

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Brumas Tunes

Ian Munro (piano)

Benjamin, A: Elegiac Mazurka

Ian Munro (piano)

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Recorded for the first time, here is a comprehensive overview of the piano music of Arthur Benjamin, an Australian composer who spent most of his time in Europe and whose music has been neglected for years. It is performed by Ian Munro, whose affinity for this music is astonishing. He has been a devotee of Benjamin for years, and the quality of his research is clearly revealed in the annotations he has provided with this release.

Munro's biography of Benjamin is the only available analytical biography of this composer in the available literature. Also included with the CD is a charming introduction by Joan Trimble, a former student and colleague of Benjamin, and the pianist who premiered Jamaican Rumba! This music is accessible and virtuosic, and the children's pieces are thoroughly charming.

Reviews

The works included here are not among [Benjamin's] larger, 'serious' works; they are all character pieces, and many of them rely on popular music for their idiom. The Rumba of the title is one such--reminding this listener of nothing so much as Milhaud's Boeuf sur le Toit and Scaramouche.

Benjamin's Jamaican Rumba was the result of a visit there in 1938 and it soon became a world hit. He did not repeat that success, yet his other genre pieces here are full of attractive ideas and catchy rhythmic invention...The performances here are first class; so is the recording

Benjamin is fortunate having Ian Munro (who also provides the notes for this disc) as the first pianist to pursue his star with such dedication. Munro is an adaptable and sensitive pianist with reserves of technical skill always at the service of Benjamin’s art rather than his own aggrandisement.

Benjamin's piano writing has the elegance and sophistication of the French School...Ian Munro revels in the music's dashing bravura. Throughout he plays with great style and elegance and obvious affection. This is a wholly delightful recital with never a dull moment throughout its 78 minutes.

Jamaican Rumba: Volume One

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