Customer Reviews

Pure Piano Portraits

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am afraid that Mr. Urbanski has said it all in his long, perceptive review. When I was approached by e-mail by the composer to give his CD a listening, it was made clear that I was under no obligation to report. Well, I did like it very much and wish to report. I find it pleasant, seriously composed music--not earth-shaking, nor was it meant to be so. As other reviewers have mentioned, this CD makes for wonderful ambient music and does not demand your full attention. On the other hand, those more technically minded would do well to study the construction and harmonies of each piece.

On the other hand, there were no special "magical moments" such as one finds in the shorter piano literature of McDowell, Debussy, and so on. Which is to say, after several playings, no one melody lingered in my memory, except for his version of "Jerusalem," which was already too familiar to me. Mr. Bjorck is quite talented and I would like to hear some more of his works in the future. In fine, this is a very good introduction to a composer who deserves to be heard.

I am a third grade teacher and my students love to work to Jeff's CD. They asked me to play it for them last Friday while they were working on English. They were calm and worked really well. I was so happy to have this wonderful CD in my room so that I could use it to calm my students down and allow them to work in a quiet and calm classroom. I love this CD. I love to play this CD at my home also while I am helping my own kids do homework or while we are eating dinner. Please buy this CD. It is beautiful!

Jeff is a real talent, his music is so soothing and peaceful. What a nice touch he has on the piano and the recording quality is the best! Pure Piano Portraits is just wonderful! It's great because you can put it on your stereo and do other things or you can sit right in front of the speakers and just relax listening to each and every note. Some of my favorites are: Be Thou My Vision, Walk Down Steward Lane, Living Waters and Starlight Ragtime Waltz! Jeff's CD is great for dinner parties, long drives, bedtime...anytime! Thank you Jeff! I look forward to your next release!--Brannan Lane

Listeners seeking a calming pace amidst the bustle of worldly demands will find Jeff Bjorck's PURE PIANO PORTRAITS the perfect refuge. Two traditional Christian hymns embrace ten original compositions to treat the ear to a relaxing experience. The technical perfection of these radiant melodies underscores the pervading beauty of music that will touch the soul. Indeed, each selection transports listeners to a world of melodic exquisiteness that offers the perfect respite. A gentle energy gives voice to Bjorck's love of spontaneity, thereby lending this album uniqueness among its peers. Lovers of piano music will quickly recognize the promise of this debut album and the marvelous future for this incredibly talented pianist, especially within his original compositions. PURE PIANO PORTRAITS comes with my highest recommendations.

Living Waters

Appalachian liquid crystal
Bubbles up through cracks
In ancient stones
Cradled by dark mountain ferns
Caressed by pure pine air.

Springing eternally forward
Crystal becomes mountain stream
Dancing down through lofty meadows
Gaining volume surging ahead
Torrent glistens
In sunlight.

Dr. Jeff Bjorck is a multi-talented artist. He writes music and poetry. He is also a clinical psychologist, researcher and professor at Fuller Theological Seminary's Graduate School of Psychology. He has a unique connection with nature and the creator. His music is almost a prayer because he plays spontaneously from the heart.

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

This album is like sunlight glistening through a forest on which the rain has just fallen. It is spectacular in its clear crystal notes and the sounds flow like a refreshing breeze through your being. I feel calm, happy and content when I listen to Pure Piano Portraits. It is like Jeff has somehow captured the feeling of joy in his music.

1. Be Thou My Vision - A worshipful piece which embodies thankfulness and praise.

2. Butterfly Sunrise - The notes fade in and out, there is no rush. Like a butterfly enjoying the early morning fluttering from one flower to the next, the notes seem to land and take off and you can almost see a butterfly taking off and landing and then flying off into the distance. There is a sense of peace and joy in this selection.

3. Mountain Echoes - The notes linger like echoes. There are moments of solitude and then a burst of energy. As if each note travels on its own path and then at times they all return at once.

4. Walk Down Steward Lane - An energetic almost tumbling experience. The music swirls around like a happy child playing out in a field of wild flowers. I see yellow flowers and the scent of freesia appears to me.

5. Can't Say How I Feel - Contemplative and emotional. There is a definite questioning tone that reflects a certain indecision. The notes ask questions only you can answer.

6. Catskill Mountain Meadow - This debut album was inspired by his love for the Appalachian woods and Catskill Mountains of his youth.

7. Living Waters - Clear crisp notes mingle with certainty. Spiritually spectacular.

8. Twilight - What amazes me about the titles of these songs is how they really do reflect the amazing visual journey each piece presents. The notes soften, you can imagine a glow from the sky just as the sun is below the horizon.

9. River Sunset - If you can imagine the reflection of the setting sun spreading out over a river and looking like a wavy picture in a dream, that is what "river sunset" sounds like.

10. Waiting for Farewell - A certain sadness and sense of loss is definitely apparent here at the start. Then resolution almost seems to set in as hope is realized.

11. Starlight Ragtime Waltz - Deeply relaxing.

12. Jerusalem - Hopeful. An arrangement of one of his favorite hymns.

If you love David Lanz, Jeff Brickman, Danny Wright, Wayne Gratz., Robin Spielberg or George Winston, you will love Jeff Bjorck. You may also want to consider: Pure Piano Panoramas.

You can play this CD when relaxing, reading or when you need a soothing escape
into your dreams. I find this music wonderful to fall asleep to or to listen to in moments of reflection. You can really just enjoy the music for what it is, in its pure form without any distractions.

Exquisitely Beautiful and Elegant Melodies to Calm and Quiet the Heart.

~The Rebecca Review

Don't let that "Dr." in front of his name intimidate you. This is an excellent New Age album from a talented artist. "Be Thou My Vision" is excellent. So is track 4, "Walk Down Steward Lane." The selections are just enough to get your attention, but not enough to distract you. If you like the works of George Winston, David Lanz and Jim Brickman, this is your kind of stuff. It's money well spent.

I first discovered Jeff Bjorck's music a while back as I was searching the internet for fellow New Age pianists.

And as I always say, if you like something you like it. That's how I felt when I listened to the tracks on this CD.

Jeff's got an amazingly sensitive touch on the piano. Most of the songs here are achingly beautiful and really capture the imagination.

One of my favorite pieces by Jeff is Butterfly Sunrise. Do yourself a favor and get this music for yourself, your family and friends!

Pure Piano Portraits made the delivery room a truly relaxing place for me as we welcomed our new baby into the world! Since then, it has provided the perfect nap time lullabies for our little girl." ~~Jennifer Davis, Pasadena, CA~~

Jeff Bjorck's Pure Piano Portraits is one of those rare instrumental creations that captures more emotion and conveys more vivid imagery than any number of lyrically based popular albums on the market today. Bjorck accomplishes this through a generous diversity of selections that offer a peek at his many influences---classical, new age, pop, ragtime, early Carole King, big-band, gospel, and inspirational stylings. The 12-song CD plays like a concert, as one song flows into the next---although the varying keys Bjorck employs on his selections provide enough differentiation to tip off listeners that he's no self-indulgent maestro, pounding out an hourlong progressive monster. The main reason Pure Piano Portraits triumphs where other run-of-the-mill instrumental attempts fail is Bjorck's keen sense of tempo and melody. Many players---fearing they won't be able to say enough with just their instruments---often fill every second with a cacophony of sound. But Bjorck often says as much, if not more, in the quiet passages between his music. The opening of the second track, "Butterfly Sunrise," is an excellent example: By striking just a few, soft notes during the nearly minute-long intro---and letting their echoes ring out for healthy stretches---Bjorck poignantly captures a floating, drifting feeling...not unlike a Monarch's flight at sunrise, just as it's wiggling its wings awake. (The song's striking imagery is such that Bjorck could very well have composed the song while watching the scene its title describes.) The tune picks up in tempo---as a butterfly might---but then Bjorck deftly reemploys his colorful, understated introduction as the song's quiet finale. Exquisite. There're no shortage of melody, either. "Living Waters"---among the most moving, bright songs on Pure Piano Portraits---lingers in your head long after the last bar is played. Its melodic excursion evokes images such as skipping down a mountain path, swapping stories at a family reunion just as sunlight's fading, and the first, exuberant heartbeats of new love. Bjorck flies all over the ivories on this one, returning again and again to various forms of his anchoring chorus. A satisfying, memorable tune. Two other standout tracks, "Walk Down Steward Lane" and "Starlight Ragtime Waltz," possess the kind of drenched-in-the-past feel you'd sense while watching the very best historically based films and theatrical presentations. These melodies manage plenty of image-conjuring as well---almost tearfully sentimental: Faded, wrinkled, black-and-white photographs of a boy fishing with his pop (and their newfangled transistor radio in tow), a crowd streaming onto a damp city sidewalk in April after witnessing Ty Cobb square off with Honus Wagner on Opening Day 1916, or a turn-of-the-20th-century family posing proudly on the front lawn...and a Model-T Ford in the background. The CD is bookended by Bjorck's arrangements of two traditional Christian hymns, "Be Thou My Vision" and "Jerusalem." Interestingly, his fine treatments only faintly hint at the original versions---you have to really try hard to recognize them. Interpreting already-created compositions does span a wide palette, but Bjorck could have easily retitled these hymns without most of us recognizing they're adaptations. Several song titles themselves reflect Bjorck's obvious love of nature: "Mountain Echoes," "River Sunset," "Twilight," "Catskill Mountain Meadow." And with the cover art---a sharp, crisp color photo Bjorck himself took at the majestic Glacier National Park in northern Montana---the total package expresses a sense of transcendence, otherness, and beauty. Bjorck has created something very special with Pure Piano Portraits---a musical statement that can touch a wide variety of people on a wide variety of emotional and reflective levels. Listening to it is much like embarking on a journey---albeit one that begins and ends in your heart and soul. Grab Pure Piano Portraits for yourself, and you'll soon be on your way...

Jeff Bjorck's smooth-flowing improvisational style is relaxing to the ears and refreshing to the soul. His interpretation of two Christian hymns form a set of perfect bookends for his ten original compositions. If you like George Winston, you're sure to like Jeff's solo piano debut CD. I have given it as a gift to many friends, and everyone likes this CD!