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Songbook Review: Turning
Suzanne Ciani
Cover image of the songbook Turning by Suzanne Ciani
Turning
Suzanne Ciani
1999 / Hal Leonard
Review by Kathy Parsons
Turning is one of my favorite songbooks ever. Many of the pieces come from Suzanne Ciani’s Grammy-nominated album by the same name, but some favorites from other CDs are also included. The pieces have a wide range of playing levels, from fairly easy to quite difficult, but all of them can be mastered with enough time and practice. Suzanne Ciani does her own transcriptions, so these are not someone else’s interpretations of her music. Quite a few of the pieces were orchestrated for her group, The Wave, and what appears here is what Ms Ciani plays when she is playing with them or when she plays the music solo. Highlights include “Butterflies,” which has two lines that are difficult, but the rest is moderately easy; “I Believe In Love,” which is one of the shorter, easier pieces; “Midnight Rendezvous,” which has some jazz touches; “Ocean Avenue,” with its catchy rhythm and tranquil melody; “Princess,” which is one of my all-time Ciani pieces to hear and to play; “Sogno Agitato,” which is fast and very dark - another all-time favorite; “Stream,” “Yang Ming Shen,” and “Turning” were all student-favorites because they are so beautiful and fairly easy to play; and “Waltz For Julia,” which has a beautiful flow. If you like Suzanne Ciani’s music and like to play the piano, this book is definitely a winner! It is available at most book and music stores as well as from www.suzanneciani.com. Very highly recommended!!!
August 20, 2008
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