Composed in the mid-70s, these Five Studies for piano offer a fascinating insight into the early musical interests of Colin Matthews - the fifth, in particular, showing the influence of American minimalism. After the gentle sequence of chord permutations which opens the set, the second study is a furious moto perpetuo, whose speed is left to the performer. The third study alternates flowing and static seventh chords, the fourth is a study in rhythm, and the final study builds from a simple figure by a continuous process of octave displacement. The total duration of the Studies is 15 minutes.

`Five Studies nods to minimalist routines, challenging the player with kaleidoscopic shifts of rhythm and dynamics that never settle for the merely mechanical.'
Gramophone (Arnold Whitall), June 2008