Description

Hear the opening section of Tina Faigen’s recording:

Completed in 1992, this Robert Schultz masterpiece for solo piano is dedicated to pianist, Tina Faigen, and is the title work for her compact disc recording,  Visions of Dunbar. The 30 page score is beautifully engraved, with performance editing by Faigen. Inspired by a Pennsylvania trout stream where Schultz and his family spent many hours fishing during his childhood, Schultz applies his contemporary impressionistic touch to much of the writing. As Schultz describes the Dunbar stream,

“The water is crystal clear and cold. The pines, mountain laurel and ferns that overflow the banks are wonderfully green and lush. The sounds of the stream and the woods are quite amazing–so peaceful and tranquil that one can get lost in it, just watching and listening. The water in the springtime is fast in most places, swollen by the melting snow. From May to September the water slows and becomes quieter, but is no less beautiful.”

While the piece unfolds in a single movement, it is made up of distinct, contrasting sections that flow directly from one into the next. Portraying the different sections of the stream with weaving, colorful figurations, Schultz applies a rich harmonic palette and gorgeous lyricism, engaging in tone-painting in some of the episodes to evoke the motion of the water. Some are more meditative, reflecting the stillness of the environment. Schultz writes,

“This is the way the stream moves–nothing returns, it just continues. You pause to fish in each section, drinking in the scene and sounds that are within your immediate fishing boundaries. You become immersed in the theme, rhythm, tempo and harmony of the section until the fly has drifted over every square foot of water that might hold a trout, or until the fish has been landed or lost. Very quietly, you move a little way up or downstream and begin again.”

Visions of Dunbar Op. 25 is also available as a Download & Print edition (digital): SMP513D