Óscar ESPLÁ (1889-1976)
Music for Piano
CD 1
Romanza Antigua (1905) [3:24]
Impresiones musicales Op.2 (1905-9) [12:51]
Scherzo Op.5 (1909) [6:14]
Crepúsculum Op.15 (1912) [8:23]
Suite de pequeñas piezas (1913) [8:53]
Levante: Melodias y temas de danza (1916) [17:48]
La pájara pinta, Piezas Infantiles (1916-20) A Game of Forfeits [8:26]
Tres Movimientos para piano (1921) [11:51]
CD 2
Cantos de antaño, Piezas Infantiles (1930) Old Songs [6:45]
La Sierra: Suite folklórica (1930-36) [9:03]
Lírica Española I: Bocetos levantinos (?1930s) Levantine Sketches
Lírica Española II: Tonadas Antiguas (?1930s) Ancient Melodies [5:06]
Lírica Española IV (?1930s) [6:37]
Lírica Española V: Suite característica (?1930s)
Sonata Española Op.53: homenaje a Chopin (1949) [15:53]
Martin Jones (piano)
rec. Nimbus Records, Wyastone Leys, Monmouth, UK, 16-17 April, 8 May 2012.
NIMBUS RECORDS NI 5889 [78:03 +69:13]
This set is another discovery for me as I not heard of Óscar Esplá before.
One of the joys of reviewing is the continuous opportunity to uncover new
composers.
Esplá was born around 1889 - his precise year of birth is unsure - putting
him between Albeniz, Granados, de Falla and Turina and Mompou and Rodrigo.
That there were other composers around at this time shows how musically rich
and productive the early years of the 20th century were in Spain,
particularly for piano music. Given the exciting rhythms and lovely melodies
that abound in the folk music of the Peninsula it is hardly surprising that
all those composers were driven to use these elements in their compositions.
This goes to show that the best Spanish music was not written by non Spaniards
as has often been claimed but by a plethora of extremely gifted native Spanish
composers. That Esplá was one of these is amply shown in these two CDs of
ravishingly gorgeous little gems.
The first item dates from 1905 when the composer was a mere 16 year old. It
is surprising how much of a feeling of wistful nostalgia he managed to inject
into Romanza Antigua, as if he was writing in exile. The five sections
in his Impresiones musicales Op.2 were also composed between 1905
and 1909. They are charming evocations of children’s stories such as Little
Red Riding Hood and Cinderella. The booklet notes say that he did not turn
to music at an early age, though 16 seems young to me. In 1911 his orchestral
Suite levantina won the International Music Society Prize and was
described by a jury, that included Richard Strauss, as ‘one of the greatest
and definitive works to be written since César Franck’. What a fantastic vote
of confidence that must have been for the young composer.
Most of the pieces on the two well filled discs are miniatures but there are
some more substantial works such as his Scherzo Op.5 and Crepúsculum
Op.15 both of which allow him scope to develop his ideas more fully.
The Scherzo is gorgeously dreamy while Crepúsculum is extremely
effective as a musical evocation of twilight. It’s quite reminiscent of Debussy.
The music here covers the period from Espla’s earliest compositions until
1949. Disc two concentrates on his middle period from 1930. Throughout his
life he was continually inspired to explore the folklore of the Spanish Levante,
the region of the east coast of Spain where he was born (in Alicante). His
Lírica Española I: Bocetos levantinos (Levantine Sketches) are from
the 1930s (precise composition dates are unknown). They are perfect examples
of this fixation, with musical depictions of the coast, local dances, songs
and other melodies. If a wistful air of nostalgia is detected in any of these
pieces then that could be explained this time by the fact that he and his
family sought refuge in Belgium during the Spanish Civil War and he didn’t
return to Spain for many years.
What I found refreshing in all the works on the discs is an air of childlike
innocence that helps to make them immediately attractive. As is so often the
case with well composed miniatures, there is a wealth of material within their
tiny time-frames.
Martin Jones who has recorded piano music from as wide a range of composers
as Szymanowski and Stravinsky to Granados and Gál is the perfect advocate
for these wonderfully simple but beautifully crafted delicate little pieces.
He plays all of them with great sensitivity and a real feeling for the colour.
It is to be hoped that these two discs will help in bringing this composer
to a new audience.
Steve Arloff
Martin Jones...plays...with great sensitivity and a real feeling for the colour.
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