Stellan Sagvik (b. 1952)
Klaverama – Complete Solo Piano Music 1969-2011
Stefan Lindgren (piano)
rec. 2012-2014, Amorinasalen, Sollegtuna, Sweden
Nosag Records CD2200 [2 CDs: 135]
Tony Lundman, in a brief note accompanying this release, comments that Stellan Sagvik’s music is both expressive and of a freetone style. One can detect Russian influences with, at times, “a stylistic proximity to Shostakovich”. He later refers to him as a “high-calibre Jack of all trades” whose music is written with the instrumentalist and audience in mind. With an impressive oeuvre of more than two hundred compositions, the genres include opera, three symphonies, choral, dance, film and piano music, songs and six very fine string quartets. The latter I had the pleasure of reviewing recently.
Sagvik was born in Örebro, Sweden in 1952 and studied both at Stockholm University and the city’s Royal Swedish Academy of Music. He’s very active on the Swedish musical scene, fulfilling the roles of composer, conductor and, since 1989, running the record company Nosag Records, whose aim is to release significant contemporary music.
CD 1 opens with what is the most substantial single piece in the collection, the Sonata Dominiqana. It runs for just over fourteen minutes and is cast in a single movement. It begins ominously with what resembles bell-like tolling. Low chords compete against more luminous figures in the higher reaches. Stefan Lindgren has an amazing colour range, and really brings this aural canvas to life. About six minutes in the music’s demeanour becomes more menacing by means of a persistent ostinato in the bass. Cascading scales are a notable feature of the spiky and angular Jacomo. Al Ulfo is imbued with melancholy and regret. The temperature cools somewhat in Für Ingrid which is a far more lightly textured piece than what has gone before. Mourning Piano is perhaps my favorite, as it’s generous in melody and pianistically rich in terms of expressive character. These first five pieces on the disc are all dedicated to the composer’s friends that he’s met over time.
Eight pieces titled Småskuret (Small cuts) usher in CD 2. They’re described as pedagogical, aimed at piano students, each increasing in difficulty. Tremedio are also studies “in enhanced reveberation”. They produce an eerie and other worldly effect. The Danser från Balka are an attractive set of four pieces. The first, Quak quak, is a real foot-tapper which strikingly contrasts with the third Torro, which has more sedate elements to it. Tamzarie, which ends the cycle is more sombre in mood. The final work on the disc is Marios Bro (Mario’s bridge), written for the composer’s son. It’s lighthearted and upbeat with a playful spring in its step.
The piano music of Stellan Sagvik is most engaging and enlightening. Stefan Lindgren is a first rate advocates to promote this music and bring it to a wider audience. He plays with technical brilliance and interpretive skill. He’s been well recorded, and the piano sound (Yamaha C7 (1984)) is excellent. The two discs are housed is a DVD box rather than the standard CD case. Pianists will be interested to know that one can also access the sheet music as pdf files on both CDs via the CD reader of the computer, which is a welcome bonus feature.
Stephen Greenbank
Availability: Nosag
Contents
CD 1 [65:11]
1 Sonata Dominiqana 14´04 1983
2 Jacomo 8´18 1992
3 Al Ulfo 4´50 1971
4 Für Ingrid 7´50 1991
5 Mourning piano 10´01 1969
Tolv Prelundringar (18’00) 1975
6 Den druknande katedralen 1´28 The drowning cathedral
7 Danse Rosée 1´21 Dance dew
8 Elektrauss 1´07 Elektrauss
9 Sonate ecritée 1´15 Sonate ecritée
10 Choralissimo 0´45 Choralissimo
11 Triondoro 1´31 Triondoro
12 Arabeskt 1´37 Arabitter
13 Repli 2´55 Repli
14 Miksi 1´15 Miksi
15 Tanza 1´30 Tanza
16 Ballad 3´33 Ballade
17 La Valsa 1´27 La Valsa
CD 2 [70:33]
Småskuret (25’58) 1989
1 Första januari 0´50 First of January
2 Vågor 2´47 Waves
3 Brisande 3´07 Breeze spirit
4 Den gamle 5´08 The old
5 Fanfanfar 2´39 Banner Fanfare
6 Tre pärons mars 4´58 Three pears’ march
7 Psalm 1´21 Psalm
8 Gycklare 5´08 Juggler
9 Tremedio 10´45 Tremedio 1989
Danser från Balkan (19’40) 1979
10 Quak quak 4´35 Quak quak
11 Vinskördedans 3´25 Wine harvesting dance
1 2 Torro 3´21 Torro
13 Tamzarie 4´18 Tamzarie
14 Ballata 3´59 Ballata
15 Suit Piano 10´05 Suit Piano 1970
16 Marios bro 4´00 Mario’s bridge 2011
