Here’s a veritable guitar grab bag that mixes classic repertoire, Chopin transcriptions, and original compositions. Roland Dyens commences with Federico Torroba’s Torija, a plaintive, lyrical gem that comforts your ears and settles you down. If Dyens’ rhythmically engaging, quasi-atonal Homage to Frank Zappa goes on twice too long for what the music has to say, his Valse des loges is a dead-ringer for Noel Coward at his sentimental apex. Take a Brazilian Chorino, dot the rhythms, add a central section of flamenco tremolos, and you’ve got Tony Murena’s Indifference. A stylish rendition of Sor’s Mes ennuls is followed by another Dyens original, a Michel Legrand-ish ballad dubiously titled Flying Wigs.
I like the guitarist’s effective register displacements in his adaption of Chopin’s Op. 69 No. 1 Waltz for guitar, and also like the gypsy-style nuances in the Op. 69 No. 2 waltz (such indulgences sound convincing on guitar, but they’d be deadly on piano!). Similarly, the chromaticisms of Chopin’s Op. 68 No. 4 Mazurka here take on a jazzy resonance. Note too the delicious slides, melodic inflections, and perfectly gauged harmonics in Barrios’ Valse No. 3. In setting Weiss’ Aria from the 20th Lute suite for guitar, Dyens tunes the low E-string down, creating a rich registral compass. Lastly, the title cut (also by Dyens) recalls contemporary acoustic finger-style players like the late Michael Hedges. Very enjoyable stuff.
