...simply extraordinary. She met every technical challenge and turned the composer's musical brutality into beauty - a remarkable performance.
Since her impressive American debut recital at New York's Carnegie Recital Hall in May of 2000, shortly after completing her Masters degree at the Juilliard School, harpist Yumiko Endo Schlaffer has been steadily gaining a reputation as a masterful artist. Rhapsodie - Prism of 20th Century Music presents a wide range of works for solo harp from French, American, Russian and Japanese composers, written from the end of the 19th century into the 21st century. From some of the most romantic harp music to thoroughly avant-garde compositions, Yumiko's wide range of expression, color, and passion takes the listener on a musical journey.
1. RHAPSODIE 7:56 (Marcel Grandjany)
DEUX DIVERTISSEMENTS (André Caplet)
2. à la française 4:31
3. à l'espagnole 5:42
4. VERS LA SOURCE DANS LE BOIS 4:27 (Marcel Tournier)
5. ROKUDAN 9:42 (Toshiro Mayuzumi)
6. TANKA 7:13 (Bernard Andrès)
7. METAMORPHOSIS I 6:10 (Philip Glass)
8. IMPROMPTU-CAPRICE OP. 9 6:11 (Gabriel Pierné)
9. RHAPSODY ON A THEME BY PAGANINI 3:13
(Sergei Rachmaninoff ; arr. C. Wooldridge & Y. Schlaffer)
YUMIKO ENDO SCHLAFFER - harp
Produced by Oliver Schlaffer
Recorded & Mixed by Michael Vazquez
Recorded at St. Andrew United Methodist Church, Plano, Texas
on August 20, 22 and 23, 2012
Mastered by Nolan Brett at Crystal Clear Sound, Dallas, Texas
Program Notes by Robert Xavier Rodriguez
Photography by David Paul Nelson
Photo Stylist: Melanie Fairlight
Cover design & layout by John Bishop
Harp Column (Alison Young)
Like the luscious glamour of her CD cover, Japanese harpist Yumiko Endo Schlaffer plays with a luxurious richness as soft as the velvet she lightly places herself on. Rhapsodie is sheer grace and elegance.
I am convinced a great deal of planning went into this CD. It?s not just one beautiful number after another with several French pieces that ...