Lya De Barberiis - Alfredo Casella: L'Opera Per Pianoforte (2002)

The complete works for piano by Casella were recorded in the late 70s by the Italian pianist, a student of the composer Leah de Barberis (1919-2013). The works are presented in chronological order in accordance with three periods of Casella's work: the impressionist-romantic (1900-1914), the period of avant-garde pursuits (1914-1920) and the neoclassical period.
Before the 1st World War, Casella pays tribute to the picturesque imagery taken from French musical culture, especially from Faure and Ravel. In early piano pieces - Pavane, Op. 1 (1902); Variations and Chaconne, Op. 3 (1903); Toccata, Op. 6 (1904); Sarabande, Op. 10 (1908); Nocturne (1909); Lullaby, Op. 14 (1909); Barcarolla, Op 15 (1910) - he shows a subtle understanding of folklore, giving folk thematism an impressionistic interpretation.
The piano cycles "In the manner of ...", 1st series (1911), 2nd series (1914) were originally conceived. Each of his plays, demonstrating the range of preferences and favorites of the author, is stylized after the masters of the late XIX – early XX century: Wagner, Debussy, Faure, Brahms, R. Strauss, Frank, D'endi and Ravel (Casella introduced the fashion for such things in France).
Nine Pieces for Piano (1914) is also a kind of dedication to the composer's friends. In the complex harmonies of these pieces, in the counterpoint of harmonic layers and the intensity of contrasts, the influence of Stravinsky's "Sacred Spring" and Bartok's rhythms clearly emerges. During these years, Casella's mature style developed – mainly melodic, based on harmony rather than polyphony, with a predominance of major-minor, which is shaded by elements of ancient frets, combined with polytonal and atonal episodes. With general diatonicity, the frequent introduction of chromatic alterations refines and aestheticizes the writing style. Other plays of this period are interesting for their experiments - Sonatina, Op. 28 (1916); Deep at Night, poem Op. 30 (1917); Two Contrasts, Op. 31 (1916-18); Trifles, Op. 32 (1918); Cocktail Dance (1918).
Simpler Eleven plays for children, Op. 35 (1920) and Two Italian folk Songs, Op. 47 (1928), echo the writing style of the children's cycles of the classics of European Art Nouveau.
Casella's work of the 30s is characterized by the predominance of technically complex neoclassical techniques. In this style, Two ricercars were written in the name of B-A-C-H, Op. 52 (1932); Symphony, Arioso and Toccata, Op. 59 (1936); Ricercar in the name of Guido M.Gatti (1942); Etude in thirds (1942); Six Etudes, Op. 70 (1942-44).