Piano Puzzles & Magic Trix

Piano Puzzles & Magic TrixWilliam McNally's third full length album for Rivermont is an impressive tour de force, spotlighting the virtuosic novelty piano music of Arthur Schutt and Vincent Matthew Johnson, plus all four published compositions by jazz master Art Tatum. In the world of 1920s and '30s dance bands, no pianist had a more dazzling technique than Arthur Schutt. His crisp, keyboard spanning solos enlivened records by Paul Specht's Orchestra, Roger Wolfe Kahn's

William McNally's third full-length album for Rivermont is an impressive tour-de-force, spotlighting the virtuosic novelty piano music of Arthur Schutt and Vincent Matthew Johnson, plus all four published compositions by jazz master Art Tatum.

In the world of 1920s and '30s dance bands, no pianist had a more dazzling technique than Arthur Schutt. His crisp, keyboard-spanning solos enlivened records by Paul Specht's Orchestra, Roger Wolfe Kahn's Orchestra, and countless studio bands. Schutt was also an outstanding and inventive composer, though the difficulty of his works kept them out of the hands of all but the most dedicated and advanced pianists. This disc marks the first time all of Schutt's published compositions have been collected and recorded as a complete set. To complement the Schutt compositions, McNally performs seven newly-composed works by Vincent Matthew Johnson and the rare "Four Gems" by Art Tatum. The package includes a deluxe 80-page hardback book beautifully illustrated with dozens of rare photos, sheet music covers, and featuring extensive commentary chronicling the life and music of Schutt, Johnson, and Tatum by William McNally. 24 tracks, 77 minutes.

Rivermont catalogue number: BSW-2271

Formats available:

• Audio CD
  
• Apple Lossless (digital download / no physical product)
• MP3 (digital download / no physical product)
  

If you are purchasing a digital download and you do not know whether your playback device is compatible with Apple Lossless, we recommend the universally-compatible MP3 format. All digital downloads include a PDF digital booklet containing all of the text and images found in the physical CD booklet. If you select Apple Lossless or MP3, you will receive a download link by e-mail upon completion of checkout; no physical product will be mailed to you.

Track list: