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Clementi Grand
Shuko Watanabe piano
Timothy Gaylard piano
Byron W. Petty wooden flute
What must it feel like to play an instrument that is one of seven known to exist in the world and is two hundred years old? Pianists Shuko Watanabe and Timothy Gaylard know this feeling, playing works written by Muzio Clementi (1752-1832) on a Clementi grand fortepiano in pieces on the Navona Records release, CLEMENTI GRAND.
The Clementi grand featured on this album was a gift by Dr. Lawrence Smith and his wife Ganelle to the Department of Music at Washington & Lee University in Lexington VA, and celebrates the bicentennial of its production this year. Some of Clementi’s most well-known pieces as well as some lesser-known works are presented, including four preludes from Musical Character Pieces, two of his didactic sonatinas, the famous Sonata in B-flat that Clementi played in Vienna at a contest with Mozart in 1781, two symphonic-sounding four-handed duets, and a rondo for keyboard and flute, featuring flutist Byron W. Petty. Watanabe and Gaylard honor this Clementi grand fortepiano with energy and enthusiasm.
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Artist Information
Shuko Watanabe
Shuko Watanabe, Instructor of Music, holds a D.M.A. from the University of Maryland at College Park, MM and BM from the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University, studying under Lillian Freundlich, Stewart Gordon and Roy Hamlin Johnson.
Timothy Gaylard
Timothy Gaylard, Professor of Music, holds a Ph.D. in Musicology from Columbia University, Artist Diplomas from the Royal Conservatory of Music at the University of Toronto and the Mozarteum in Salzburg, and B.A. and B.M. degrees from Carlton University.
Byron Petty
Flutist, pianist, composer, and conductor Byron W. Petty holds a BM in flute performance from the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University, where he studied with the noted flutist Britton Johnson. He has served as Instructor of Piano at Roanoke College and Instructor of Flute and Piano at Southern Virginia University. He is a Lecturer in Music and has taught courses in Composition and Musical Analysis as Visiting Assistant Professor of Music at Washington and Lee University. From 1995-2002, Petty was the Conductor/Music Director of the Eurydice Community Orchestra of Roanoke and subsequently, the Artistic Director from 2002 through 2003.
