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Chopin E-Fl
MUSIC FOR A SUMMER EVENING The Rainbow Sound of Bianco, His Harp and Orchestra
Sweet shimmering
SOUNAS, Music out of a dream by one
of America’s top harpists A wonderful new world of sound is opened up in
this album by the imaginative use to which
Bianco puts his harp. Bianco’s harp sparkles
with a fresh new sound. A tegato flow rather than
a staccato plink of strings plus a style that is
more piano-like and chord conscious than one
customarily hears on the harp.
Too often the instrument is relegated to playing
glissandos and fill-ins; here, playing his own ar-
rangements, Gene Bianco, one of America’s top
harpists, excitingly demonstrates the virtuosity
of his instrument, from the seldom-used lower
register to the sparkling twinkle of the upper
strings. In arranging the music for the harp,
Bianco has provided a fresh, new look at familiar
tunes. Moreover, he has provided a harp bridge
between each selection, continuing the mood of
one song, setting up the mood of the next. The
result: the shimmering music of Bianco—the rain-
bow sound of harp and strings— providing a per-
fect background to an evening of relaxed listen-
ing. Orchestral settings, to complement the
Bianco arrangements, were provided by Charles
Grean and Norman Beatty.
In recording this program, three contact baby
microphones were placed on the harp itself, so
that none of the soft shadings of the strings
would be lost in either the warmly romantic num-
bers like A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening and
Produced by Herman Diaz, Jr.
Stella by Starlight, or the exquisite impressionism
of such a work as Debussy’s Mazd with the Flaxen
Hair. The most difficult work, according to the
young harpist, was the Chopin E-Flat Nocturne,
long associated with Eddy Duchin, because of
the probiems of adapting its essentially pianistic
character to the larger sweep of the harp, and its
unique harmonic structure.
Knowledge of the harp comes naturally to
Gene Bianco; his grandfather, Phillip Capobianco
was a famous harpist. Inspired by this example,
young Gene studied the instrument between
school hours in Hartford, Connecticut, and active
participation in school sports. After service with
the Navy he continued his studies at the Juilliard
School of Music.
He appeared for two years at the Radio City
Music Hall, and has been frequently featured as
soloist on radio and television. Night clubs;
Broadway shows such as Redhead, Tenderloin
and Donnybrook; a solo engagement at the Palace
Theater, and continuing engagements in record-
ing, radio and television studios—all this bears
testimony to the esteem in which his perform-
ances are held. In this program—refreshingly
different, engagingly romantic— Bianco and his
Rainbow Strings weave enchanting new patterns
of sound. :
MAHLOM CHARLES ©1963, Radio Corporation of America ¢ Printed in U.S.A.
Mono CPM-105
Stereo CSP-105
SIDE 4
A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening cascap 3:17)
Evening Star p.p. 3:10)
Twilight Time cami 3:00)
Drifting and Dreaming cascap 2:52)
Lullaby of the Leaves cascap 2:40)
Moonlight in Vermont cascap 2:40)
SIDE 2
In the Blue of Evening cascap 3:45)
The Breeze and | (Andatucia) (BMI 2:32)
La fille aux cheveux de lin (Maid with the Flaxen Hair) (P.D. 3:10)
Moonlight Cocktail cascap 2:35)
Chopin E-Flat Nocturne ¢p.p. 3:05)
Stella by Starlight cascap 3:07)
Recorded in Webster Hall, New York City. Recording Engineer: Bob Simpson. Re-recording Engineer: Mel Martin.