<<  -- 3 --  Malcolm Tattersall    AN IMPRESSIVE ACHIEVEMENT

The remaining solo items are equally individual. Graeme Koehne is perhaps most widely known for To His servant Bach, God grants a final glimpse and the musical portrait which is his contribution to Mirrors has a formality which also suggests baroque influences. Charlton gives us a toccata-like introduction followed by an allegro and a passacaglia, all closely related and all over in less than five minutes, while Davidson contributes an impressionistic ramble along Brisbane's Junction Road. Finally, Hinchinbrook Riffs ripples along beautifully with the help of a delay unit, evoking the constantly changing patterns of sand, waves and clouds of this tropical island wilderness.

Kain's playing is marvellous. He is completely at ease with every technical demand and every idiom, and brings out the individuality of each piece with a story-teller's supple control of pace and emphasis.

This is, I think, the first time I've been the least bit disappointed by a Tall Poppies disc. I'm annoyed with myself for being disappointed because I know I'm being unreasonable, but I can't help it. My problem is that Mirrors of Fire feels so much like half of a double-CD set and I want the other half. If we had another work with orchestra and a few more solo items, I needn't suffer the jolt of an orchestra arriving in my living room mid-way through an intimate recital. And I could, very happily, listen to Tim Kain for another hour.

For help listening to the sound extracts here, please refer to our questions & answers page.