Urban Works, for solo piano

Urban Works is a set of eleven short piano pieces inspired by various cities around the World, and ideal for pupils playing the equivalent of Grades 1 to 8 of the ABRSM. The most characteristic feature is the blend that the author presents of a current musical style and harmony present in film music, television, musicals or minimalism (with influences from composers such as Ludovico Einaudi, Yann Tiersen, John Williams, Michael Nyman, or Hans Zimmer) with the type of writing, thematic treatment, piano technique and musical form found in the classical piano repertoire; such as Bach's Preludes, Haydn's Sonatines, Schumann's Album for the Young, Grieg's lyrical pieces, Beethoven's Bagatelles or Chopin's Nocturnes. All eleven pieces offer a repertoire with the demands and challenges present in the repertoire used in exam boards (ie. ABRSM and Trinity Guildhall) and conservatories but with a modern use of harmony and melody such as the one we can hear on television or in the cinema.

Most music and arrangements written in this current style offer an often repetitive or lengthy musical discourse and development which is suitable for genres such as pop or film music but does not always fit well to the classical recital tradition or the necessary demands to evolve as a piano student in an academic context. A fact for which many piano teachers and institutions cannot use them despite the great demand of many pianists willing to enjoy playing them. Thus, Urban Works pieces respond to the need to have music with a diversity of modulations, changes of positions and articulations, a variety of textures and writing, as well as free counterpoint and many more compositional techniques necessary for the pianist to develop his potential as a performer while enjoying a present and familiar musical language.

An analogy could be found with the work of Christopher Norton, where in this case a style closer to Jazz, instead of film music, is transferred to the classical academic context. Thus, Urban Works is an opportunity for those looking for another stylistic alternative.
 

 

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