by Joel C. Thompson
The Schumann Project, Volume 1
Captivating poetics, unforced and flowing, emanate from the hands of pianist Inna Faliks while she shares her renderings of works by Clara and Robert Schumann on the MSR CD, “The Schumann Project, Vol.1.” The recording includes Clara Schumann’s “Sonata in G Major” and Robert Schumann’s “Symphonic Etudes,” not published during their 19th century lifetimes. Yet, each of the works reveals their talents and may well become part of one’s music listening repertoire, especially as Faliks masterfully plays them. A piano sits idle and says nothing until a virtuoso takes command of it. In this case, Faliks brings a delightful, relaxed beauty to the ears of her audience which stands apart from what other performers may offer. From its opening note to its last, her performance involves an hour that vanishes in a flash. How that magically occurs is a result of her talents and skills as well her knowledge of the Schumanns as it is shared with us in the CD booklet. We may expect a sequel to this effort in as much as Faliks has labeled this CD “Volume 1.” If you have heard Faliks perform in concert or if you have been fortunate to have one or both of her other CDs on MSR, “Sound of Verse” or works by Ludwig Beethoven, you will no doubt be pleased with this Schumann CD, or it will provide an introduction to her earlier two titles.
“I found Faliks rather exceptional in her own right as a pianist, aside from being compared with dozens of virtuosos I have heard over decades. There is something ethereal, effortless, about her playing that would be hard to define. It is what happens when those of us in the arts stop trying and let it happen as it will. In her case, she is capable of shear, unforced beauty in performance, worth a detour and some expense to experience in person at a concert, I would say.”