Bagatelles – Piano music by Bernard Hughes
Experience the complete works of composer Bernard Hughes for solo piano in this exceptional collaboration with pianist Matthew Mills. This eclectic collection covers over 25 years of music, featuring a range of styles and moods that are sure to captivate. From the oldest piece dating back to Hughes’ student years at Oxford to a brand new suite transforming Baroque dance forms into something surprising and new, this album is a masterpiece of composition and performance. With pieces ranging from the large-scale Strettos and Striations to little occasional pieces written for the composer’s children, there is something for everyone on this album.
What truly makes this album special is the collaboration between Hughes and Mills. The two musicians have been working together for many years, resulting in a deep understanding of each other’s artistic vision and an unparalleled ability to bring Hughes’ compositions to life on the piano. Mills himself is an accomplished composer, founder and owner of publishing company Wild Woods Music, whilst Hughes was appointed Composer-in-Residence at St. Paul’s Girls’ School after receiving his Ph.D in composition from Royal Holloway College.
Hughes’ music has been widely performed and broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and across Europe. A recent commission, Birdchant, was chosen to receive its premiere by the BBC Singers at the 2021 Proms. He has composed operas, choral and vocal works, as well as piano music, to great acclaim.
Track Listing
- Song of the Walnut (1:31)
- I. Boogie-woogie – instead of a Prelude (after L. Couperin) (3:58)
- II. Tango – instead of an Allemande (after J.S. Bach) (2:07)
- III. Ländler – instead of a Courante (after H. Purcell) (2:36)
- IV. Boléro – instead of a Sarabande (after E. Jacquet de la Guerre) (1:52)
- V. Halling – instead of a Gavotte (after J.P. Rameau) (1:38)
- VI. Mazurka – instead of a Minuet (after G.F. Handel) (2:04)
- VII. Tarantella – instead of a Gigue (after F. Couperin) (1:54)
- Song of the Button (1:48)
- I. Study: for dexterity in alternating between the hands (1:32)
- II. (0:40)
- III. (1:26)
- IV. footprints (1:42)
- V. Study: for accuracy in the playing of double octaves (0:54)
- VI. If Eros laughs (1:13)
- VII. Bog-Face (1:40)
- VIII. 26th April 1827, morning (1:17)
- IX. Study: for evenness in executing scale passages (0:59)
- X. Grazioso (1:07)
- XI. (1:48)
- XII. Nocturne (0:38)
- I. Melody (0:36)
- II. Danny's Dance (0:48)
- III. Simple Canon (0:38)
- IV. Walse (0:39)
- V. Dialogue (0:56)
- VI. Tuesday's Tune (0:27)
- VII. Cat's Cradle (0:34)
- VIII. Bist du (2:40)
- IX. Molly's Tune (0:35)
- X. Fughetta (1:42)
- XI. Anacharsis Cloots (1:37)
- I. Count Me Out (2:46)
- II. The Cornice Fish Passacaglia (2:54)
- III. False Alarm (2:35)
- O du Liebe meiner Liebe (5:50)
- Strettos and Striations (9:35)
- Cradle Song (1:17)
Bernard Hughes:
Partita Contrafacta:
Bagatelles:
Miniatures:
Three Studies:
Reviews
“Some songs are…lovely, others livelier…Mills…understands the music well.
” —Jeremy Condliffe
“Hughes also states he takes these pieces as seriously as any other; one presumes there is something of a challenge involved here that Hughes relishes. There is real care lavished on these often highly appealing morsels…this is a stunning album and a fine introduction to the music of Bernard Hughes. More, please.
” —Colin Clarke
“All [the pieces] are witty and expertly crafted… Superb playing by pianist Matthew Mills, for whom Hughes composed many of the pieces.
” —Barry Kilpatrick
“Bernard Hughes’ piano music is engagingly diverse with music ranging from the insanely difficult to that written for amateurs. Always intelligent and characterful, this is a disc of wonderful short pieces. Pianist Matthew Mills is clearly a marvel, his technique encompasses everything that the composer throws at him; thanks to Hughes’ intelligence and Mills’ skill, this is a recital to treasure.
” —Robert Hugill
“Bernard Hughes has a wide-ranging knowledge of music, married to an insightful and idiosyncratic sense of humour. Hughes and his virtuoso pianist Matthew Mills have been friends for years. The Bagatelles were composed for him. They are twelve piano studies, some of them fiendishly difficult demanding our full attention like the musical equivalent of plate spinning or complex juggling. Mills plays with joyful élan.
” —Alan Cooper
“While broadly tonal in design, Hughes’s music is not averse to more aggressive or hostile styles: listen to the vibrant third and fifth Bagatelles, for example. The composer [shows] chameleon-like stylistic diversity. Matthew Mills performs throughout with virtuosity and undeniable understanding of the idiom, and Divine Art’s sound is first-rate.
” —Guy Rickards
“This is a most enjoyable and interesting album offering the listener insight into the breadth and variety of Bernard Hughes’s compositional output and his kaleidoscopic musical personality. But perhaps what makes this album truly special is the culmination of many years of collaboration between Bernard Hughes and pianist Matthew Mills, resulting in a deep understanding of each other’s artistic vision and an unparalleled ability to bring Hughes’ compositions to life on the piano, which [Mills] does masterfully with colour and vigour, humour and warmth.
” —Frances Wilson
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