Edward Neeman plays Sharagan by Larry Sitsky (1/4)

Larry Sitsky is an Australian pianist, composer, teacher and musicologist. He is recognized as a leading scholar of the music of Ferruccio Busoni.

While exploring the work of the Armenian mystic Gurdjieff, Sitsky found himself entranced by Armenian folksong, and spent two years collecting songs and composing a series of works based upon them. The four movements of Sharagan (the title is the Armenian word for song) are four evocations of Armenia. The first movement could be an heroic tale, sung by a folk musician accompanying himself on the saz, a plucked instrument with a low drone. The second movement imitates a jazz clarinettist improvising in a nightclub in Yerevan. A young woman could be sitting at her bedroom window on a cold winter evening, singing a melancholy tune to herself in the unashamedly romantic third movement. The fourth movement is characterized by fast repeated notes typical of an Armenian zither.

Recorded at Yamaha Artist Studios, New York on May 13, 2009

http://edwardneeman.com

Category:

Music

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• Larry
• Sitsky
• Edward
• Neeman
• Sharagan
• Fantasia
• piano
• pianist
• classical
• music
• modern
• 1984
• mystical
• George
• Ivanovich
• Gurdjieff
• Australia
• concert
• Yamaha
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• New
• York
• Canberra
• jazz
• folk
• Ferruccio
• Busoni
• Egon
• Petri
• zither
• clarinet
• saz
• yerevan

[Nigeao]

Who is composing such weird tunes^^

[tedneeman]

Yes, I've played Sharagan for Sitsky numerous times. It's not his final word though-- after recording I played for him again and he made some important suggestions for the first movement.