…for Sonja

This recording is dedicated to Tony Gould's dear friend Sonja Krawatt. It is a collection of traditional and emotionally rich Jewish melodies. Cello and clarinet join Tony Gould's piano on some of the tracks.

Tony Gould piano
Imogen Manins cello
Adam Simmons clarinet

Tony Gould composer
John Williams composer

"Sonja Krawatt was a remarkable woman in many ways: generous, spirited, a lover of music and the other arts, passionate about life and her fellow human beings.

"The pieces on this recording are all well known especially in Jewish circles, but they are such lovely songs melodically their appeal crosses cultural boundaries quiet easily, as all good music does. The majority of them are traditional and emotionally rich. The inclusion of the more recent theme by John Williams from the wonderful movie Schindler’s List is a lovely example of how our great art transcends time, and is capable of underpinning the most profound human feelings.

"The woman to whom this recording is named and dedicated was a great lover of music and the other arts and a generous spirit in the broadest sense of the term." – Tony Gould

Press quotes

“Gould begins his title track with a gentle meditative walk showing hints of Jewish tropes, including the repetitious shape of certain sequential phrases, the gentlest of intermediary seventh cords, and suggestions of minor-inflected modes. Cellist Imogen Manins joins in for two interludes. At the fireplace brings Manins back to play the lyric itself, followed by Adam Simmons working through a variant of the tune on clarinet. The trio participates as an entity towards the end of Tum balalaika, during which Gould enjoys an extended solo, Manins outlines the tune both straight and elaborated, and Simmons offers the most subtle of interference plays in an episode following his own yawp-inflected solo handling of the theme, which appears clearly on both guest instruments in a final round-up.”

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— Clive O'Connell, O'Connell the Music

“The piano, clarinet and cello sounds are to me amongst the most beautiful in all music. And given that Jewish melodies are rich in ambiguity – hovering between joy and sadness back and forth – the programme reflects these tendencies. The program is bookended by two originals by Gould, For Sonja and Encore Sonja which for me are the most affecting in the programme. The first is a simple, elegant duo conversation of cello and piano with a strong melody and sweet harmony at adagio tempo. The second piano solo perhaps at largo tempo, with much sustain, is a felt conclusion and elegiac musical farewell. The program may be personal but the music is universal, consummately played by all three participants.”

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— Ian Muldoon, Music Trust e-zine Loud Mouth

Artist

Tony Gould

Pianist and composer Tony Gould is one of Australia’s most respected musicians. His career has encompassed many styles of music, including jazz and other improvisatory forms, as well as traditional and contemporary classical. For the past 50 years he has remained at the forefront of music education in Australia.