In order to carry out this exciting project, Javier Perianes and Josep Pons returned to the original sources: manuscripts held in the Archivo Manuel de Falla in Granada.
A rising star both in his native Spain and, more recently, much further afield, the young pianist Javier Perianes was in London, in January, for his debut concert with the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican, recorded here. The repertoire is a piece Perianes knows well, de Falla’s Nights in the Gardens of Spain, and the conductor is someone he knows and respects hugely, Josep Pons. Perianes continues to champion neglected Spanish composers and his most recent CD, of sonatas by Manuel Blasco de Nebra, has been a minor revelation.
“Falla has not found so persuasive an interpreter among his compatriots since the late, great Alicia de Larrocha. Perianes...relish[es] the dance rhythms and melodic sensuousness of the solo part as much as Pons and the BBCSO savour the colours and atmosphere of his Debussy- and Ravel-inspired orchestration. It is a rare treat to encounter a pianist so inside the idiom of Falla’s seldom-heard works” Sunday Times, 4th September 2011
“Perianes brings colour and flair to Falla’s Nights in the Gardens of Spain, matched by the rhythmic piquancy of the orchestra...A highly attractive disc.” The Telegraph, 2nd September 2011 ****
“In the Nights in the Gardens of Spain...both pianist and orchestra revel in its colouristic opportunities. Perianes employs the subtlest of rubatos here, teasing us with little delays and hurry-ups before joining the orchestra on the main beats. Thanks to the conductor these are firmly under control, affording a satisfying interplay between fantasy and rigour.” BBC Music Magazine, December 2011 ****
“what immediately impresses is the sharpness, the steeliness of Josep Pons’s accompaniment. He too loves [Noches] but never wallows in it...Perianes spent time consulting Falla’s autograph scores before making these recordings; it’s hard to imagine them being bettered.” The Arts Desk, 29th October 2011
“This is a disc to lift the spirits. Whether the music is sultry, strenuous or sunny, Javier Perianes plays with an infallible ear for style, atmosphere and colour...in the Nights in the Gardens of Spain the BBC Symphony Orchestra joins Perianes for a performance of panache and captivating flair and freshness.” Gramophone Magazine, January 2012
Gramophone Magazine
