Henri Dutilleux: Complete Solo Piano Music 1 Piano Sonata I. Allegro con moto 7'22 2 II. Lied 6'41 3 III. Choral et variations 10'54 4 5 6 3 Preludes I. D'ombre et de silence II. Sur un meme accord III. Le jeu des contraires 3'35 3'53 7'50 7 8 9 10 11 12 Au gre des ondes I. Prelude et berceuse II. Claquettes III. Improvisation IV. Mouvement perpetuel V. Hommage a Bach VI. Etude 3'18 1'01 1'29 1'53 2'48 1'16 13 Bergerie 1'19 14 Blackbird 1'35 15 Tous les chemins ... menent a Rome 1'42 16 Resonances 2'28 17 Petit air a domir debout 1'16 18 Mini prelude en eventail 1'06

From the American Record Guide May/June 2007 – Reviewed by Lehman

“As one might expect a masterpiece (The Sonata) of this order has attracted many performers – it has been recorded many times.  …………..John Chen , on this new Naxos disc, is a wonderful pianist who plays with (and is recorded in) exceptional clarity.  He illuminates the music’s mercurial character without rushing things…at the same time he has an unforced sense of this music’s rapture and enchantment and employs a seemingly unlimited array of colors and attacks to bring them to life.  In short, this is a superlative performance, and given Naxos’s resplendent sonics – up-close, immediate, powerful, luxuriously rich – I’d rate it the best ever.”


From MusicWeb International (UK) - Reviewed by Tony Heywood

“It’s a tight, classically-structured three-movement form, (the Sonata) and references to other composers are audible, the most obvious being Bartok, whose folkish modality is echoed in the work’s main opening motif.  Chen’s nuanced yet propulsive playing brings plenty of light and shade, as in the delicate bridge passage that leads to the second theme (track 1, 2:09).  He is slightly less highly charged in the stormier passages (as at 4:01) than my only available comparison, a super ‘off air’ Radio 3 performance from Artur Pizarro, but Chen is very much alive to the many contrasts within the Sonata’s rigid framework.  He is suitably contemplative in the Prokofiev-like Lent second movement, and rises heroically to the Sonata’s grand Choral et Variations finale, whose imperious, dissonant opening reminded me in passing of Copland’s piano music, some of which was written after studies in France. I love the toccata section beginning at 1:52, where Chen’s enviable technique is fully up to the considerable demands placed on it.  All told, this is an excellent version which does complete justice to a brilliant, multi-layered piece……………….Of the remaining works, many are miniatures lasting one or two minutes……..They are never less than entertaining and Chen’s beautifully graded pianism is hypnotic………I look forward to hearing more from him.”