Sonia Rubinsky and Naxos continue their series of the piano music of
Villa-Lobos with this volume containing the Bachianas Brasileiras No. 4, the Carnaval das Crianças, and a few of his lesser-known suites and pieces. For the most part these works are not as virtuosically spectacular as Rudepoêma or the Prole do bebê suites; they are character pieces in the truest sense of the form, and even the dances on the disc present specific moods. It takes a truly imaginative musician to successfully put across these types of works, and
Rubinsky does indeed succeed. The Bachian aspects of the Bachianas Brasileieras No. 4 are brought out well in this solo piano version.
Rubinsky clearly delineates the intertwining melodic lines and subtly creates drama, primarily letting the music speak for itself. Within the simpler sound and textures of the Carnaval das Crianças and Francette et Piá suites,
Rubinsky keenly imparts their childlike natures, but also convincingly conveys
Villa-Lobos' character paintings that blend the emotional and pictoral. The other brief pieces on the disc could easily be overplayed as leftovers of the Romantic era, but
Rubinsky doesn't wallow in their moodiness. She knows this music well, and it shows.