Alexander Djordjevic: Reviews

The Grand Prix du Disque has been awarded to:
Alexander Djordjevic - Gray Clouds: Piano Music of Franz Liszt

"[Alexander Djordjevic] ... has the key to the peculiar and meditative world of the works from Liszt's late years.  Djordjevic simply plays the sixteen pieces of different length without any kind of mannerism and with a poetic approach, finding the character and appeal of each piece."

"Djordjevic brings great subtlety to this well programmed Liszt Disc" proclaims Gramophone, which is published in the U. K. and is one of the most important classical music magazines in the world.

It goes on to write "...Djordjevic's mastery and commitment are never in doubt. Listen to the first Elegie's carefully gauged climaxes, the subtle gradations in tone that help flesh out Nuages gris' sparse textures, the warm legato that embraces Romance oubliée's soft chords, or how the pianist imbues the Bagatelle ohne Tonart's grace notes with a convincing jazzy flair."

"...a fine young pianist."

Gray Clouds: Piano Music of Franz Liszt is the latest CD release from pianist Alexander Djordjevic which features a variety of solo piano works from Liszt’s late period.

Known most often for his great, powerful Romantic works (B minor Sonata, et al), Liszt was a master at smaller scale works as well, and many of these are beautifully intimate works which often feature great harmonic and musical invention.

As with any Liszt works, these shorter pieces require a pianist of utmost skill and artistry, and Alexander Djordjevic brings formidable talent and technique to these works, coupled with a profound poetic sensitivity to the music. Gray Clouds features a number of Liszt’s “sacred” works for solo piano – the “Stabat Mater”, “Vexilla Regis Prodeunt” & “Sancta Dorothea” are among those on this collection, and Djordjevic gives each of these works a stately, yet reflective tone, bringing out their grasping for the Divine, while works such as the well-known “En Reve Nocturne” exude the spirit of Romanticism, and the incredibly original “Bagatelle Sans Tonalite” points towards the 20th century.

Through all of these works, Djordjevic displays a deep affinity for Liszt’s music, showcasing by turns their profundity, their thoughtfulness and their joy, and in every case transcending any limitations of technique.

Gray Clouds: Piano Music of Franz Liszt by Alexander Djordjevic is a stirring collection of works from one of music’s most original artists.

Alexander Djordjevic might be characterized as an 'objective' pianist in the sense that he remains always in scrupulous control of the music: Chords are immaculately voiced to yield the most minute harmonic changes; sonorities mix, hang around and then dissolve just when they should; and the musical line is scrubbed clean of artifice, clutter and distracting exaggerations. What then emerges is a constant infusion of original insight that freshens the music and makes even repertory staples seem new.

Djordjevic's recital Sunday afternoon at the Phillips Collection traversed two of the most notoriously difficult pieces in the repertoire -- Mussorgsky's 'Pictures at an Exhibition' and Schumann's Symphonic Etudes -- and both benefited immeasurably from slower than usual tempos and his predilection for playing comfortably within his subtly precise technique. The Mussorgsky sounded almost civilized, and though the primitive Russian sweat the composer poured into this piece was missing almost entirely, compensations bloomed throughout -- a big sound that was opulent because it was always related to its antecedents, and a sure sense that every sonic picture was etched at the keyboard exactly as the performer envisioned it.

Djordjevic pressed out unexpected colors in the Symphonic Etudes without braking momentum or fussing with the composer's linear design, and gamboled innocently but with gleaming elegance through Mozart's sunny Sonata in C, K. 330.

In the first section, he attacked the brilliant runs, trills and scalar passages with confidence. Djordjevic's playing had glitter when this virtuoso display piece called for it, but he also showed the ability to evoke a deep emotional response in the consolatory theme of the slow movement. In the exciting finale, Djordjevic and the orchestra under [guest conductor Gregory C.] Cunningham kept the musical ball whizzing over the net to a brilliant conclusion. As a gentleman sitting nearby said to me, 'Well, that woke us up!' Many in the audience stood in appreciation at the end of the concert.