Catalogue

Summary:

“… Meyers shows all pieces in the best light with her exquisitely elegant playing and much charm. Her intention was to show light and hope and she succeeds …” ★★★★ – Uwe Krusch, Pizzicato

“Meyers is in her usual superb form throughout a recital that is an absolute delight from start to finish.” - Terry Robbins, TheWholenote.com

“Meyers has made a specialty of bold, original, and immediate programming, but she has outdone herself this time.” ★★★★½ – James Manheim, AllMusic.com

“Anne Akiko Meyers weaves a starlit soundscape that is rich, absorbing. And deeply satisfying.” - Julia Figueras, WXXO-FM

“… Piazzolla’s Histoire du Tango is also beautifully judged, with one foot placed firmly in the concert hall … ‘Café 1930’ and the Elvis Presley/Andy Williams hit Can’t Help Falling in Love are two further highlights of the album. So, too, is a specially commissioned piece by Leo Brouwer entitled Laude al Árbol Gigante.” - Julian Haylock, The Strad

“Throughout there are fireworks and much technical skill …” - Geoff Brown, BBC Music

“… her [Meyers] artistry is always skilled, delicate, intricate, and touching. She makes every note mean something as few musicians can. In the present album, we hear her at her best and most eloquent.” - John J Puccio, Classical Candor

Anne Akiko Meyers has amassed a multitude of fans and admirers for her exquisitely curated recordings, often exploring her passion for new music, and old music in new guises. Her quest for creative collaborations has inspired countless commissions and world-premieres, with the results infusing Shining Night, an album that embraces themes of love, poetry and nature.

Anne’s fruitful association with composer Morten Lauridsen led to the arrangement of his popular choral work Sure on this Shining Night, for violin and piano, lending its name to the album’s title. From there springs forth an album imbued with music of light and hope, spanning the history of music through Baroque, Romantic, Popular, and current genres.

J.S. Bach’s famous Air on G and Corelli’s colourful La Folia – arranged for violin and guitar – rub shoulders with Latin-tinged Estrellita (Little Star) by Manuel Ponce, the Aria from Villa-Lobos’ Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5, and Piazzolla’s Histoire du Tango. Two of the 20th century’s most iconic songs appear in intimate and tender new arrangements: Duke Ellington’s (In My) Solitude, and Can’t Help Falling in Love, famously crooned by The King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley.

Anne’s collaborators are eminent Italian pianist Fabio Bidini and Grammy Award-winning guitarist Jason Vieaux. The release of Shining Night coincides with International Astronomy Day (May 7).

“It all started when I asked Morten Lauridsen if he had written any duos, and led to these arrangements, Sure on This Shining Night and Dirait-On. Shining Night is based on a poem by James Agee and describes a man going on a walk and thinking back over his life. That inspired this collection of pieces that metaphorically begins in the morning and explores the vast musical history through Baroque, Romantic, Popular, and current genres. The common themes throughout the music reflect on one’s relationship with nature, love, and poetry. And how in dark and challenging times, kindness profoundly affects our souls and opens infinite possibilities when living our lives. This is dedicated to all the duos in the universe, including my Jason.” – Anne Akiko Meyers

Tracklist:

Shining Night… for Anne                                                                       

ARCANGELO CORELLI (1653–1713), arr. Poxon
1. La Folia* 8:32

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (1685–1750), arr. Campbell – adapted Poxon
2. Air on G* 5:26

NICCOLÒ PAGANINI (1782–1840)
3. Cantabile 3:39

MANUEL PONCE (1882–1948), arr. Heifetz – adapted Poxon
4. Estrellita* ‘Little Star’ 3:28

HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS (1887–1959)
5. Aria from Bachianas Brasileiras No.5 5:12

DUKE ELLINGTON (1899–1974), arr. De Rosa
6. In My Solitude* 3:12

ASTOR PIAZZOLLA (1921–1992), arr. Varelas
Histoire du Tango
7. Bordel 1900 3:54
8. Café 1930 7:29
9. Night-club 1960 5:50
10. Concert d’aujourd’hui 2:53

HUGO PERETTI (1916–1986), LUIGI CREATORE (1921–2015)
GEORGE DAVID WEISS (1921­–2010), arr. Poxon
11. Can’t Help Falling in Love* 3:13

LEO BROUWER (1939–)
12. Laude al Árbol Gigante*
‘Laude to the Giant Sequoia Tree’ (2020) 4:33

MORTEN LAURIDSEN (1943–)
13. Dirait-On* 4:55
14. Sure On This Shining Night* 4:56

Jason Vieaux, guitar - 1,2,3,5,6,7-10,11,12
Fabio Bidini, piano - 4,13,14
For Anne* 1,2,4,6,11,12,13,14

Executive Producer: Anne Akiko Meyers | Producer: David Frost
Recording Engineers: Silas Brown & Sergey Parfenov | Mastering: Silas Brown
Recorded: Zipper Hall at the Colburn School November 4–6, 2021