Orford Six Pianos is six pianists who first came together at the 2006 Orford Festival in Quebec. The six pianos idea was that of
Olivier Godin, who gathered the other pianists and arranged most of the music on this program, not just to be a novelty, but to present popular classical works in a way that audiences weren't used to hearing. Not everything here is for six pianos. The waltz from Faust is a two-piano, eight-hands arrangement that's well-known to ensemble pianists, and the Wilberg Fantasy on Themes from Bizet's Carmen has also become something of a standard among those who play the eight-hand repertoire.
Rachmaninov's Polka Italienne was originally for piano duet, but has been expanded, like the rest here, to the six pianos. The Danse Macabre and overture to The Barber of Seville are frequently arranged for multiple pianists, as are the salon pieces of Eduard Holst, which always sound unmistakably like the lighthearted falderal from the 1890s that they are. What's usual here are the selections from
Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet.
Godin's arrangements of these capture the originals well, without making them overly dense. In other instances, such as certain places in the
Rachmaninov and the Holst, it seems too much like a lot of unnecessary redoubling of sound, despite the best efforts and intentions of the performers. They are all technically very capable and energetic, and easily communicate the music to the listener. The ensemble work is very good considering the number of performers increases the chances of problems in playing together precisely. Sound balance problems are also expected, given the difficulty of miking that many pianos, but these are also minimal. Fans of the
5 Browns will probably enjoy this disc, but it definitely is more of an acquired taste than something for everyone.