CD Review: Laszlo Gardony - Clarity

(Review by Steve H)

Laszlo Gardony, a Hungarian born pianist now resident in the USA and a long time professor at Berklee College of Music. His regular trio comprises of John Lockwood and Yoron Israel.

Clarity, a solo album of 10 compositions, was recorded in one extended session in 2012 and you get the feel of an almost recital like performance as piece after piece segue seamlessly  into each other. The playing is at times mellow, melancholy , moody and magnificent. Peaceful  passages are followed by romping bass lines. All the pieces are sensitively named  reflecting the nature and character of the playing and no doubt the inspiration behind them.

.The album begins with some slow gentle appropriately named  pieces  Settling of  a  Racing Mind, Surface Reflection and  Looking Deeper which has an almost ecclesiastical feel in places. Things then begin to liven up with Working Through (Clarity) and Finding Strength culminating in the  longest track on the album Better Place which begins gently before building up to a rousing climax with some thumping left hand. The next pair of tracks Opened Window and Tempering bring as back to tranquility again before leading us into the rousing penultimate track Resilient  Joy this title is 100% perfect  a folksy light hearted romp with an Appalachian feel to it. The album concludes with Resolution (Perfect Place) a beautiful melodious finale.

As you may be able to tell I really enjoyed this album from start to finish just sitting back and listening to it was a not only a reflective but also an uplifting experience I was both moved and entertained. If solo piano rocks your boat this will certainly have you to-ing and fro-ing until your ship comes in.

Steve H