Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 15
 sumptuous, beautiful and essential October 14, 2004
Julian Treasure (London)
38 out of 40 found this review helpful
This is an album to dissolve into, a bit like the best hot bath you've ever had. As I have got to know it I have fallen deeply in love with it. pCraig Armstrong is a talented guy. As well as his classical and film works (including scores for The Bone Collector and Baz Luhman's Romeo and Juliet), he has worked with artists such as Massive Attack, Madonna, U2, The Future Sound of London, and Björk; he also orchestrated the themes to GoldenEye, Batman Forever, and Mission Impossible. pThis is a much smaller scale album: simply Armostrong and a piano. The instrument is wonderfully recorded - I don't think I have ever heard so much richness of tone from an instrument that was never my favourite on its own. Several of the tracks use studio technology (loops, delays, envelope editing, reversing) and unconventional playing methods (plucking or stumming strings) to create a wider sound palette, though as he says, all the sounds originate from the piano.pThe mood is intimate, reflective, inclusive. The 19 pieces are roughly song length, and most leave you wishing they were longer. Goregeous melodies, intelligent developments and brilliant arrangements combine to create an album that elevates the listener and gently leads you to a state of serenity, celebration and quiet joy. Fantastic for careful listening, meditation, driving or any situation where you want to be calmed and feel good about humanity.
Utter Beauty June 10, 2004
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Craig Armstrong is one of today's greatest orchestral composers, but on this album we hear more of his quieter, more reflective side. And he's all the better for it. While I absolutely adore Armstrong's epic orchestral arrangements, I love his simplistic piano pieces just as much.brArmstrong's "Piano Works" is reminiscent of Grieg's calmer, more romantic moments, Massive Attack's simpler, jazzier moments, and John William's more dramatic, less cheesy moments. Yet still he retains his individual sound.brWhereas the fantastic Cinematic Orchestra wrote an album based on a film, a film director has made a film based on Armstrong's "Piano Works". If it is anything near as elegant and evocative as the album itself, it will be worth checking out.brCraig Armstrong retains my utmost respect, then, with his sublime and uncluttered album. This man never fails to impress me.
Simply Stunning June 23, 2005
8 out of 10 found this review helpful
I bought this album after hearing a 30 second intro somewhere on the web. Being a player of the piano myself i love to just sit and listen to its magical soothing tones. Craig Armstrong has created an album of pure magic as far as i`m concerned. I continue to find myself hypnotised by it time after time. The more i listen, the more i fall in love with it. Filled with haunting introspective melodies, it grabs your attention from the first few bars of music. When this CD goes in the HiFi i`m instantly calm, relaxed, and in my own little world. It has been expertly produced and arranged and its definately in my top ten favourite albums(I`ve got over four hundred). Buy it, love it!
Sublime June 4, 2004
Dan (UK)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is the most sublime album i have heard in years. Craig armstrong is very simply a musical genious who has scores and scores of material behind him . From the very first track you are taken to a world without trouble or stife , please buy this album you will feel better for it
Album of the Year...again June 9, 2004
Collin Kelley
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is absolutely one of the best instrumental albums I've ever heard. It's haunting, cinematic and moving in so many places. I've been a fan of Armstrong since his work with Massive Attack, but nothing prepared me for the simplicity and reverence of Piano Works. All my coworkers kept drifting into my office wanting to know what I was listening to and lingered. That's the sign of a good album. Weather Storm, Fugue and Angelina are my favorite tracks, but it's hard to really have a favorite when it all flows so beautifully together as a suite. Put this album on the player on a rainy afternoon and you will instantly be transported to Paris. When is the accompanying film going to be released on DVD? The trailer included on the multi-media section of the disc is breathtaking: beautiful shots of Paris, vistas of trees and empty chairs, a horse and buggy running down a beach, the Eiffel Tower peaking over the trees, the windmill of the Moulin Rouge and Armstrong at the piano playing an overture of the music on the album. Another brilliant piece of work by one of our great modern composers.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 15
|
