Long-running and influential online magazine Textura has just released its top 20 lists for classical and jazz recordings of 2024. Coming in at number seven on the list of instrumental solo classical albums is David Kaplan, assistant professor of piano performance, with New Dances of the League of David.
Textura writes:
07. David Kaplan: New Dances of the League of David (New Focus Recordings)
A more fascinating and original treatment of Robert Schumann’s music than David Kaplan’s New Dances of the League of David would be hard to imagine. The LA-based pianist presents the composer’s Davidsbündlertänze but with a twist: having commissioned a decade ago miniatures by American composers that reply to Schumann’s 1830s creation, Kaplan has coupled the new with the old, the result a riveting portrait in twenty-eight parts, thirteen short pieces from the original alongside fifteen re-imaginings. While in format New Dances of the League of David might qualify as a classical mixtape of sorts, its uniformity makes it seem more like an ambitious collaborative project midwifed into being by many like-minded spirits.
Textura reviewed the album in September 2024. The album is available through New Focus Recordings, is available for purchase and on all major streaming applications.
