  Rick LaSalle, Piano Sonatas, Ragtime Ingrid Marsoner Gramola     |
Whocareswhenitwascomposed-Music
It’s such a delight to stumble upon a composer, one that I've never heard of before, who turns out to be most enjoyable: Rick LaSalle (*1951) in this case, with three of his eight traditionalist piano sonatas. This is Whocareswhenitwascomposed-Music, joyous compositions with spunk and humor and a deft lyrical streak to which the Second Sonata speaks strongly. Beneath the Seventh Sonata pumps a heart fueled by French baroque, and even the slightly sterner, “recalcitrant” little Eight Sonata wiggles coyly along the keys of Ingrid Marsoner’s Steinway. She caps the LaSalle recital with a fun Ragtime the composer wrote for her. Easy to listen to, but not “easy-listening”!