Blue Griffin Recording is behind "Piano Music of Ricky Gordon," a world-premiere 62-minute recording boasting "Gordon's lesser-known piano works…a collection of highly characteristic pieces that combine Gordon's unique musical language, innate feel for melodic lines and an intimate knowledge of the instrument."
Gordon writes, "From as early as I can remember, it was through the piano, that I spoke...and felt most articulate. These are songs without words, or scores to foreign movies in my head, or meditations. It is perhaps also a dedication to all of the great American composers who I loved so much growing up — Arthur Farwell, Peter Mennin, Robert Muczynski, Leo Kraft, Ned Rorem...who are deep in my heart, my greatest of influences."
The recording features critically acclaimed American pianist Nauman, a longtime friend of Gordon.
The complete tracks are as follows:
Five Dances 1. Tango
2. Waltz
3. Bear Dance
4. Barcarolle
5. Joy
6. Desire Rag
The Caste System
7. I. Rhythmic
8. II. Very Slow and Hesitant
9. III. Mechanically
10. They Dance (from Orpheus and Euridice)
11. Ring-A-Ding-Ding for Piano Four Hands (with Sergei Kvitko)
"Piano Music of Ricky Ian Gordon" was recorded at Blue Griffin's Studio The Ballroom, produced and engineered by Sergei Kvitko, and is available at www.BlueGriffin.com, www.Amazon.com, as well as other online and physical retail outlets.
Gordon was born on May 15, 1956, in Oceanside, NY and raised on Long Island. After studying composition at Carnegie Mellon University, he settled in New York City, where he emerged as a leading writer of vocal music that spans art song, opera, and musical theatre. Gordon's songs have been performed and or recorded by such internationally renowned singers as Renée Fleming, Dawn Upshaw, Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth, the late Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Frederica Von Stade, Andrea Marcovicci, Harolyn Blackwell, and Betty Buckley, among many others.
Recent productions of his work include Rappahannock County, libretto by Mark Campbell, a fictional song cycle inspired by diaries, letters, and personal accounts from the 1860s; Sycamore Trees, book by Ricky Ian Gordon and Nina Mankin, seen at Signature Theatre in Virginia; The Grapes of Wrath, an opera based on the John Steinbeck novel, with libretto by Michael Korie; Green Sneakers, a theatrical song cycle for Baritone, String Quartet and Empty Chair, with a libretto by the composer; Orpheus and Euridice, an hourlong song cycle in two acts; My Life with Albertine, written with Richard Nelson and based on Proust's "Remembrance of Things Past" (recorded on PS Classics), among other works.
Among his honors are an OBIE Award, a Helen Hayes Award, the 2003 Alumni Merit Award for exceptional achievement and leadership from Carnegie-Mellon University, the Shen Family Foundation Award, the Stephen Sondheim Award, The Gilman and Gonzalez-Falla Theater Foundation Award, The Constance Klinsky Award, and many awards from ASCAP, of which he is a member, The National Endowment of the Arts, and The American Music Center.
