“Woman at the New Piano is an album with a surely cosmic purpose… this prodigiously talented, California-based pianist and teacher, has recorded a delightful and diverse program of brand new works she commissioned in 2013 from four outstanding composers, Tom Flaherty, Peter Yates, Adam Schoenberg and James Matheson. … Shpachenko makes a most convincing case for [Adam Schoenberg's “Picture Etudes”] and we are unlikely to get such a definitive, affectionate recording soon. As with Mussorgsky, the piano only version gives the listener insight to the inner voices and the frame of the music while the orchestral can dazzle with color and power. Both are worth hearing. … Stellar performances throughout, usual fine Reference Recordings sound throughout, informative liner notes and a most varied and energetic program make “Woman at the New Piano” a clear winner and a new favorite here.” —Don Clark, Pictures on Silence
Labels: Don Clark, Nadia Shpachenko, Pictures on Silence, Review, WomanAtTheNewPiano