The music of Stephen Dodgson was always elegantly crafted and often quietly memorable, too, usually in a broadly tonal language but always sounding fresh. Such is assuredly the case with a generously fill disc of Dodgson’s piano works played by Osman Tack.
The most important work here is the Piano Sonata No. 7, receiving its first recording. It’s an impressive work in three movements, uncompromisingly serious and tightly argued with a particularly impressive finale – and is an essential supplement to Bernard Roberts’s recording Dodgson’s first six piano sonatas (on Claudio Records). The other works here include the second set of Six Bagatelles, Three Impromptus, Four Moods of the Wind and Eight Fanciful Pieces (the sixth of which, ‘Mirage’, gives the record its title).
Osman Tack is a thoughtful pianist and he allows Dodgson’s music to unfold naturally, giving it time to breathe and never forcing the pace. This is a recording that does far more than fill some gaps in Dodgson’s discography: these works are present in exemplary performances and very well recorded.
International Piano
