Album Review: Scarab from Wayne Alpern
Album: Scarab Artist: Wayne Alpern Label: Henri Elkan Music Website: https://www.waynealpern.com https://www.billytest.com Arranger/composer Wayne Alpern reimagines a selection of Beatles tunes with pianist Billy Test on his latest release Scarab from Henri Elkan Music. The emotion Test puts into melodies like "Eleanor Rigby" and "Hide Your Love Away" allows audiences to hear something new, something more intriguing about the compositions. His inherent sense of melodic versing is magical, choreographing seamless dances with the piano keys. His improvised twists and imaginative tweaks enhance the natural lyricism in the melodies, emphasizing poignant moments along the chord progressions that make the listener stop and take notice. Alpern's interpretation of "Yesterday" projects passion laden with a fiery urgency that's comparable to one of Beethoven's momen...