Michael Kieran Harvey - The Sparrow and the Mead Hall (2023) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

01. Four Ballades for Piano, 1. Stark
02. Four Ballades for Piano, 2. Implacable
03. Four Ballades for Piano, 3. Quasi fantasia
04. Four Ballades for Piano, 4. Fast
05. Piano Sonata #70, The Sparrow and the Mead Hall, I. Non fui (Misterioso)
06. Piano Sonata #7, The Sparrow and the Mead Hall, II. Fui (Ansioso)
07. Piano Sonata #7, The Sparrow and the Mead Hall, III. Non sum (Free, atmospheric)
08. Piano Sonata #7, The Sparrow and the Mead Hall, IV. Non curo (Distaccato)
09. Lawyers Are Lovely Misunderstood People and We Should All Be Much Kinder to Them for Piano
10. Death Cap Mushroom

These works are composed and (mostly) performed by Michael Kieran Harvey. They range in style from the extended techniques and rarefied atmosphere of Piano Sonata #7 to the more traditional romanticism of Liszt and Busoni in the Four Ballades, to the entertaining bebop language of Lawyers… and the strident metal-influenced satire of Death Cap Mushroom.

These recent works owe their existence to some very generous commissioners: Four Ballades commissioned by artist Graeme Lee; Piano Sonata #7: “The Sparrow and the Mead Hall” by the late artist Mary Pridmore; lawyer Craig Mackie; and the ANAM Set 2021. All works were written and performed during the Covid pandemic.

Michael Kieran Harvey, piano

DOWNLOAD ALBUM [flac]

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