In a backhanded comment directed towards Grieg's Lyric Pieces, Claude Debussy once declared that 'one has in one's mouth that bizarre yet delightful taste of pink bon-bons filled with snow'.
If the number of record and concert hall appearances is anything to go by, it seems that the Frenchman's sentiments haven't exactly melted away. Under-recorded and underperformed (relatively speaking), these Norwegian miniatures have struggled in a crowded marketplace of short romantic piano works dominated by the likes of Chopin, Schumann and Brahms. Indeed, the fact that 2007 is a centenary year for Grieg has, on these shores, gone largely unnoticed thanks to another Edward (Elgar).
On her latest CD - Lyrical Travels with Edvard Grieg - the Norwegian pianist Liv Glaser attempts to rectify this situation by returning to the repertoire that she originally performed in the mid-1960s for RCA's first ever complete recording of these works.
Though scepticism creeps into the mind at the sight of any disc these days with a running time of less than an hour, the 57:29 duration of this recording is vindicated by Glaser's excellent programming. This is not merely a 'best of' disc. Whilst the renowned Wedding Day at Troldhaugen (Bryllupsdag på Troldhaugen, Op. 65 No. 6) makes the grade, receiving a beautifully contoured performance, the equally famous To Spring (Til våren, Op. 43 No. 6) is not included. Furthermore, the widely contrasting nature of the Lyric Pieces - from the desperate yearning in Lonely Wanderer (Ensom vandrer, Op. 43 No. 2) to the furtive vitality of Puck (Småtroll, Op. 71 No. 3) - is put on full display in all its aural splendour.
Indeed, all eighteen of the sometimes disparate works chosen here are beautifully characterised by Glaser. Her sparkling account of Butterfly (Sommerfugl, Op. 43 No. 1), with its witty and charmingly unpredictable rubato, is a truly palpable acoustic regeneration of the creature's flight path. Homeward (Hjemad, Op. 62 No. 6) receives an exceptionally rousing rendition as Glaser revels in Grieg's stark harmonic twists. Delicate, heartfelt phrasing brings many of the works to life, particularly Shepherd Boy (Gjætergut, Op. 54 No. 1) and At the Cradle (Bådnlåt, Op. 68 No. 5), though it should be added that Glaser's tendency to occasionally place bass notes fractionally before those in the treble won't be to everyone's taste.
These are just a few examples of the superb playing to be heard throughout this disc. To go through the merits of each track is, unfortunately, too great an undertaking for the confines of this review.
The decision to perform these works on an 1853 Érard grand piano is a welcome one, even if Glaser's own justification for such a move (that Grieg would 'undoubtedly' have encountered these instruments while on tour, and that the 'vocal reverberation' created by their unique damper system might have influenced the composer's choice of register) is somewhat tenuous and unnecessary. The wonderfully distinctive tone quality is apparent from the very opening of Once Upon a Time (Det var en gang, Op. 71 No. 1). The warm, soft-edged timbre lacks the resonance of a modern grand in the middle and upper portions of the keyboard - especially when played with any force - which serves to accentuate the more resounding tone in the bass, as well as Grieg's glorious inner contrapuntal lines. Credit must also go to engineer Audun Strype for bringing these attributes to the fore.
Throughout these performances one senses a deeply personal connection between Glaser's playing and Grieg's compositions which, in turn, makes for a highly satisfactory listening experience. Whether you are already an avid admirer of the Norwegian's music, or if you have yet to discover his miniature masterpieces, this is most definitely a disc worth seeking out.