I first became interested in the work of Heinrich Schenker when I was a teenager, fascinated by his insights into deep-level processes of tonal organization and the nature of tonality itself. I have always felt that an analysis should communicate the most truthful understanding of the analyst's hearing of the music in question, and that the clearest explication of that hearing is the fundamental goal; whatever technique makes for the clearest, deepest, and simplest explanation (which isn't the same as simplistic) is the way to go. In truly capable hands, the Schenkerian approach can be one of the most elegant and enlightening means of analytical investigation and a very powerful tool in the shed.

Schenker's massive influence on the theoretical world, coupled with the fact that he abandoned composition in later life, leads us to forget that he was a real composer and that his works were performed and highly regarded in their day. (Today we only have occasional reminders of that fact, such as the single mention, in passing, in Alma Mahler's published diaries.) These factors also surely contributed to the sense that Schenker's compositions must not be interesting or are pedantic - otherwise, why would he have abandoned his work and why isn't it played more often? This month's recording should serve as a pleasant and surprising eye-opener. Though not all five of the Fünf Klavierstücke may have passed the test of time, several of them are very striking, and the Inventions Nos. 1 and 3, also included on this recording, are original and fun.