A Grecian Festival
FANFARE

MAY/JUNE 2012
by David DeBoor Canfield

COHN A Grecian Festival.10 Oboe Sonata.1, 6 Violin Sonata.2, 7 Viola Sonata.4, 8 Baroque Suite.5 Piano Trio No. 2.2, 5, 10 Arkansas Reel12 • 1Winnie Lai (ob); 2Eric Grossman (vn); 3Hideaki Aomori (cl); 4Amadi Azikiwe (va); 5Gerald Kagan (vc); 6Kenneth Chia (fl); 7Emil Kagawa, 8Vladimir Valjarevic, 9Lori Piilz, 10Susan Kagan (pn); 11Laurel Ens; 12Qnt of the Americas • MSR MS1285 (77:35)

I first encountered the music of James Cohn a number of years ago in the course of my record business, coming across several LPs and CDs on the XLNT label. Hearing the chamber works on those issues, I always wondered why his music isn’t better known. It is most ingratiating in every way, incorporating good melodies, a dance-like character, and evidencing idiomatic use of every instrument. Perhaps its unabashed tonality has been a drawback in certain quarters, but I know enough performers who will love it.

The present disc offers a generous sampling of Cohn’s art in the chamber-music idiom to those who may not have yet encountered it. As far as I can tell, all of this music is recorded for the first time, although Cohn’s First Piano Trio was included on one of the XLNT discs. The dance-like quality of his music is obvious from the get-go; the first work on the CD, A Grecian Festival, is shot through with danceable rhythms, although the third movement’s tango seems rather far removed from Greece. (The tango shows up again in the opening movement of his Second Piano Trio.) The Oboe Sonata would seem to allow Cohn to make a claim of being America’s Poulenc. The unabashed joy of the melodies in this work is every bit the equal of that found in the Frenchman’s melodic genius. The work, especially in its jazzy finale, is a delight from beginning to end.

Actually, the same may be said of every work on the CD. The Viola Sonata, with its bouncy opening movement, calmly meditative second, and rhythmically dynamic finale, should be on the radar screen of every violist. They must by now be looking for something besides the ubiquitous Rebecca Clarke sonata, and this work is at least as good as that repertory staple. The pieces for solo clarinet are also rewarding to hear, and I would think to play as well.

The most “different” piece on the CD is not more modern than the others, but more retro. In his Baroque Suite for solo flute, Cohn looks back to the dance forms and melodic contours of that era, while updating the tonality a bit. It definitely owes more to the 18th century than to the 21st, however.

Performances on this disc are uniformly excellent—even definitive. I am happy to encounter pianist Lori Piitz in a new recording: She is a superb artist, whom I was happy to record on my Enharmonic label a number of years ago. The recorded sound of every work is likewise both warm and spacious. There is simply nothing not to like about the recording of this well-crafted and inspired music. If you’re into tonality, Cohn is definitely worth exploring, and this CD is as good a place to start as anywhere. I hope to be able to hear some of Cohn’s works for larger forces someday. He is the composer of eight symphonies, for example. How about it, cpo? Care to take up the cause of a worthy American composer?


REVIEW BY:  Maria Nockin J.

If you were looking for Greek music, James Cohn A Grecian Festival is not the place to find it. This disc is, however, a festival of good contemporary melodic music. The title piece was, at any rate, written on a commission from the California-based Laurel Ensemble to honor its mythological patron, Daphne, the nymph who turned into a laurel tree, the leaves of which are used to crown achievers of greatness. The first movement is a musical embodiment of the words of Sikelus in an ancient inscription that begins, “For as long as you live, be happy.” All the melodies in this work are authentically Greek, but the rhythms come from other parts of the globe. The second movement is a love song, but the third movement is the most striking: a tango dedicated to wine. Traditional Greek wine has a resinous taste that originally came from the pine pitch used to seal containers so that their contents did not spoil in the hot climate. If resin and wine are an interesting combination, so is the Greek melody played to tango rhythms.

Cohn says he has always had the idea that music should not just be rational or logical. He thinks it should be transparent enough to give the listener a general idea of how it is put together. He feels that all music should relate to the human voice, and he writes in a melodic style. Since he wants his compositions to communicate not only sounds but feelings as well, he hopes that people will have some kind of an emotional reaction to his compositions. His sonatas for violin, oboe, and viola with piano are transparent in the manner he describes, and he endeavors to give each instrument equal prominence. Although the violist on this disc plays his part with panache, the violinist and oboist seem to be a bit hard-pressed to maintain tonal quality in the uppermost notes in their pieces. Both the violin sonata and the piano trio have final rondos that incorporate catchy Jewish melodies that are just plain fun. I love the music in the sonata that describes pupils thanking their teachers for instruction! Somehow that never happened at the high school where I taught. I have reserved a special note of praise for Cohn’s Arkansas Reel. It is a wonderful piece based on two quintessentially American folk songs, Arkansas Traveler and the Blue Mountain Boys Reel. He uses these tunes much as European composers have used their folk music for centuries. It is a most listenable piece that can attract more people to classical music. Bravo, Maestro Cohn, for that one. The recording sessions for this compact disc were held in New York, California, and Virginia, so there is a bit of difference in the sound as you go from one track to another, but on the whole, the sound quality is good and the music well worth hearing.