Raised in both southern Wisconsin and central Illinois, and discovering a love for piano at age 10, accomplished pianist Richard Waterman graces us with his latest collection, Elegance. Renowned for “playing from the heart,” Waterman offers his interpretations of beloved popular music with a few of his own equally emotive compositions. And yes, Waterman is a full-time airline pilot, but as fun and daring as that is, it’s not quite as fulfilling. So, let’s listen to a few selections from Elegance and perhaps help Waterman spend more time behind the keys – and less behind the controls.
Wait. Who does what?
Richard Waterman plays the piano, and offers his own accompaniment through various synth pads and patches.
Now, let’s listen (shhh)….
The first track, “Unforgettable” by Irving Gordon, in a way, and perhaps unintentionally, sounds a bit cosmic with its clean, subtly wavering synth pad. It’s interesting, and grants a scope to this classic, very human and longing love song. And the playing? It’s hitting the voices you don’t hear, but should – all the passionate ups, downs, and in-betweens are captured with the piano’s heightened emotional acuity. Great opener, and I can’t wait for the next piece.
“Improv in February,” a Waterman original, is a more stripped down piece; it’s subdued, centered, and introspective. It’s the soft but heavy snows February comforts us with; the aching heart that ponders taking a risk to save it. It’s all these things pouring with quiet drama from a singular perspective.
“Ave Maria” by Franz Shubert is passionately active playing. It chooses a mood and works through it with elegant, nimble flights up and down the keyboard. There’s spirit and fire cooled with respectful poise and restraint.
Nina Rota’s “A Time for Us” is filled with keyboard flourishes as the hands channel – and enhance – the song’s emotional tumbling. This is an amazing and amplified interpretation.
“Wind in the Valley,” another Waterman composition, features wispy piano trickling and lower key rumbling to translate the melodic nature of rolling, dust-blowing gusts. This is an excellent piece that somehow, and extraordinarily, syncs the piano with chaotic swirls of nature’s quickly traversing breaths. Is it my personal favorite? Yes indeed.
And Waterman’s works continue with “Ash Rain.” It’s a little jazzy, a little classic American songwriter, and a little playful throughout its self-imposed seriousness. But ultimately, it falls back on its weariness and quietly takes a seat in the dark.
Waterman closes out the album with “Claire de Lune” by Debussy. It’s as classically astute as you would imagine, but there’s a different color here – a difference in the interpretation that makes the longing greater, the strength and suffering augmented, and the silent self-awareness more critical, but more intimate. This is an excellent passion-infused elevation of something already quite impassioned.
But…is it actually good?
Of course! And Richard Waterman’s Elegance is not only “good,” it’s ASTOUNDING! There’s a sense that Waterman is so familiar with, so close to, these pieces, that he can, at an emotional whim, take these works to previously unclimbed heights. Your heart will follow every dance of Waterman’s nimble fingers, and allow itself passage into the melodic lands he capably excavates and delicately tends. RECOMMENDED.
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BELOW: Listen to Richard Waterman and check him out on Spotify, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, “X”, and Amazon Music. Please support Richard Waterman by visiting his website, and playing, downloading, and/or purchasing his music. And, as always, thank you for supporting real music.
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