William Howard - Howard Skempton: Preludes and Fugues, Nocturnes, Reflections, Images

William Howard performs the solo piano music of Howard Skempton in a collection that includes Skempton�s 24 Preludes and Fugues, inspired by J.S. Bach�s example but in a contemporary style. Skempton�s piano miniatures are concise, crystalline gems: clear, colourful and bright. There is a neoclassical quality to Skempton�s Preludes and Fugues, which exude a serene, almost otherworldly atmosphere, tempered with a sense of intimacy and refinement. Each Prelude consists of a spare, canonic piece, and each Fugue is woven into an intricate but delicate texture of interlacing lines. Skempton�s Three Nocturnes are richer and more fluid, at times darker-hued and enigmatic, with the use of jazz inflections but with a similar clarity of texture to that heard in the Preludes and Fugues. The Reflections are exquisite windows into a world of contemplative introspection, and the Images represent a varied collection of miniatures culminating in a Postlude based on The Keel Row, a folk tune from the north of Britain also used in Debussy�s orchestral Images � perhaps a nod to the impressionistic aspects of these works, as alluded to by Skempton in his album notes: �The landscape of these four collections of pieces is gently unpredictable��