Pure Piano Panoramas

Jeff Bjorck | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 20, 2000)
• Original Release Date: November 20, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Pure Piano Music
• ASIN: B000055YVA
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #351,732 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #26 in Music > Indie Music > New Age > Piano

Editorial Reviews

PURE PIANO PANORAMAS begins where Jeff Bjorck's debut CD, PURE PIANO PORTRAITS ends. Many pieces on Bjorck’s first CD reflect his love for the Appalachian woods and Catskill Mountains of his youth. Now, having lived the last decade in Southern California, he has turned to the desert and chaparral for inspiration. From the Joshua Trees of the Mojave Desert (portrayed on the CD cover) to towering thunderclouds hovering above parched earth, Jeff’s new songs take the listener on a panoramic tour.

These new pieces were all recorded in 2000. Most were composed over the previous four years, with two exceptions: Day Without A Sun was created in 1977, the year that Jeff lost his only uncle to cancer; Your Love Has Made Me Fly is a 1986 tribute to Sharon, Jeff's wife (and best friend) of ten years. Their first joint effort at songwriting, Sculptor of the Sky, reflects their shared amazement with the beauty of clouds. Several other pieces also convey personal themes. Jeff honors his grandmother, who almost lived to see her hundredth birthday and a new millennium, with Remembering Gramma. An avid hang glider pilot, Jeff's love of flight is manifested in Soaring Mesa Cliffs, which beckons the listener to rise high above the mundane into clear, stark, silent skies.

As he does on his first CD, here Jeff surrounds his own compositions with original arrangements of two traditional hymns. He explains, "Holy, Holy, Holy has long been a favorite, and it served as Sharon's and my wedding processional, so it is particularly special. As for O, The Deep, Deep Love of Jesus, I am continually overwhelmed by God's love, and this hymn expresses my sentiments well."

Jeff describes his compositions as "quiet music to calm the heart in a noisy world." His first CD has provided reassuring focus for mothers in delivery, peaceful rest when insomnia comes knocking, and elegant ambiance at intimate wedding receptions and dinner parties. He remarks, "It is my hope that PURE PIANO PANORAMAS will bring my listeners more of what they enjoy, emotional music with a classical feel that lifts them from the rat race and gently sets them down in a restful place, as far away from everyday chaos as possible."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A lovely concert of piano music for the soul, April 24, 2001

By 

F. Behrens "Frank Behrens" (Keene, NH USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Pure Piano Panoramas (Audio CD)

In my review of Mr. Bjorck's "Pure Piano Portraits," I commented that I missed those "magic moments" one finds in the shorter pieces of composers like MacDowell and Ravel. With the current album, <Pure Piano Panoramas>, I can withdraw that modification to a great extent. I have already played this through about five times and was happy to find NO traces of (say) Groffe in "Desert Cloudburst" or of Ives in "Porch Swing Summer Night." Which is to say that this composer has found his own voice and it is a good one.

His arrangements of the religious hymns with which he chooses to sandwhich his own melodies are quite good; and I suppose the idea is to show nature, as it were, in a divine context. The program notes include the lyrics to "Sculptor of the Sky" but they are not sung on the CD.

I only wonder why Amazon.com chooses to put this in the Popular section when it obviously belongs with the Classical.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspired Artistry, April 2, 2001

By 

Bob Marlowe (La Crescenta, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pure Piano Panoramas (Audio CD)

The listener can usually tell when music is contrived and without soul. Not so with Jeff Bjorck's two CDs, "Pure Piano Portraits" and "Panoramas." When listening to these compositions I have been transported to the places that inspired many of these pieces. Jeff's piano playing is art that inspires and touches the soul.

Bob Marlowe

12 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quiet Music to Calm the Heart, November 8, 2002

By 

Rebecca Johnson "The Rebecca Review" (Washington State) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Pure Piano Panoramas (Audio CD)

"It is my hope that Pure Piano Panoramas" will bring my listeners more of what they enjoy, emotional music with a classical feel that lifts them from the rat race and gently sets them down in a restful place, as far away from everyday chaos as possible." - Jeff Bjorck

Jeff Bjorck plays with a depth of soul not often found in solo piano compositions. There is something deeply moving and spiritual about his music. It is at times like he is having the most intimate musical conversation with the Creator. He will often just sit and play spontaneously from the heart. In fact, he has been creating his own music since he was ten years old.

"Sometimes I feel like a third party, listening to the whole process as an interested observer!" - Jeff Bjorck

In his debut album: "Pure Piano Portraits" Jeff Bjorck was inspired by his love for the Appalachian woods and Catskill Mountains of his youth. Now he is inspired by the Mojave Desert and thunderclouds moving over the scorched earth.

Jeff has many interests, including hang gliding high above the mountains of Southern California. Here he finds creative inspiration for his music. He also loves photography, illustration, painting and poetry. As a clinical psychologist, researcher and professor at a theological seminary, he brings a depth of wisdom, emotion and understanding to this album. He and his wife have written some beautiful words for "Sculptor of the Sky" which are included in the CD booklet and can be read along with the music.

"Human hands make images
in wood, clay and stone.
Statues coldly stand in silence
when the artist's work is done.
But every cloud You breathe is full of life,
color, light, and motion.
They dance across our canopy
as restless as the ocean.
You're the Sculptor of the sky,
every cloud Your work of art,
And the beauty of Your workmanship
wells up inside my heart."

~Jeff and Sharon Bjorck

The first time I listened to this CD I played it in order to fall asleep and found it to be very relaxing and emotionally soothing. I awoke refreshed. When I listen to this CD during the day, it is refreshing and awakens my soul. Jeff recommends listening to the music for the music alone and believes his compositions are "quiet music to calm the heart in a noisy world."

This CD has also apparently been used to help women through natural childbirth, provide an atmosphere of sophistication at intimate wedding receptions and dinner parties, helped children fall asleep at nap time, calmed students in a classroom, assisted patients during chemo and has created a peaceful setting for clients of massage therapists as they work. It is also played on radio stations across America.

Many of the pieces have personal meaning.

"O, The Deep, Deep Love of Jesus" is an emotional piece which moves from acceptance to forgiveness and love. It expresses what the human heart feels when you are unconditionally loved and accepted.

"Joshua Tree" has an open feel. You are standing out in the open at sunset. A cool breeze moves in and you feel free, happy and relaxed. This piece expresses a calm surrender of the day to the night.

"Soaring Mesa Cliffs" takes you high into the sky, perhaps into the highest emotions that are reflected in exquisite notes of perfection. You can almost feel the warmth of the sun, the wind blowing through your hair. Peaceful and reflective.

"Day Without A Sun" seems to have the feeling of letting go, of accepting and letting your soul fly back to God. This was written when Jeff lost his only uncle to cancer. It seems to be saying: "We will meet again in a superior world, free of pain."

"Desert Cloudburst" holds back at first. The clouds swirl in the sky and then the rain falls slowly at first, droplet by droplet. Then torrents of wet raindrops splatter against the parched earth perhaps even causing a flood of water to wash over the desert. This seems to be about being nourished, about allowing your heart to open and be refreshed by God's love.

"Remembering Gramma" is a delicate piece of pure beauty. This was written for his grandmother who almost lived to see her hundredth birthday. It is my favorite piece on the album. This piece seems to represent a centering force, a stability and a sadness for the loss of someone you loved deeply.

"Porch Swing Summer Night" has a slow feeling of swaying back and forth that is quite magical. You can imagine a warm breeze and conversations about the stars appearing. I can almost hear the stars appearing in the night sky. Unique! This almost sounds like a lullaby at times.

"Your Love Has Made Me Fly" is a tribute to his wife Sharon and seems to take off from the start. It is more intense and filled with a subtle excitement for life. It almost sounds bittersweet in moments and deeply comforting at others. How beautiful.

"The Homestead" seems filled with activity, comfort and connection.

"Holy, Holy, Holy" is a worshipful hymn celebrating the creator, maker of all
that inspires us in nature.

Pure Piano Panoramas is beautiful in its simplicity, stunning in its ability to calm the soul and will refresh your spirit. This is timeless music for a temporary world. There is a little hint of the eternal in Jeff's exquisite compilations.

If you love David Lanz, Jeff Brickman, Danny Wright, Wayne Gratz., Robin Spielberg or George Winston, you will love Jeff Bjorck.

Spiritually Uplifting.

~The Rebecca Review
Author of Seasoned with Love: A collection of
best-loved recipes inspired by over 40 cultures