WILDER Pas Seul. Suite for Piano V. Piano Series. Castel Promenade. Mort the Pianoforte. Romantic Waltz. Jolly Waltz. Jazz Waltz for a Friend. Theme Number Four. Her First Party Dress. Suite for Piano VI. Lullaby for a Lady. Why? The Walkaway. Inner Circle. Homework, Lil Darlin’, Tempo. Where Are All the Good Companions? Blackberry Winter • John Noel Roberts (pn) • ALBANY TROY1886 (61:35) Alec Wilder is best known as one of the contributors to The Great American Songbook, with songs championed by such friends as Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee and Tony Bennett. But he always had ambitions as a writer of concert music and opera, and studied composition (briefly, and without nabbing a diploma) at the Eastman School of Music, in his hometown of Rochester, New York. This charming collection of solo piano works, almost inevitably, shows off both sides of his musical personality. There are 38 tracks on this CD, so yes, the works are all very short, ranging from 37 seconds to just a minute and a half. Not surprisingly, Wilder’s melodic gift shines brightly here. Even the simplest, shortest snippets exude a beguiling lyricism. The other characteristic that flows through this program is Wilder’s original harmonic sensibility, in which simple chords play against dissonant clusters, all the while proceeding at an utterly natural, even leisurely pace. I could not help thinking of Bill Evans in some of the music in regard, although Wilder, unlike Evans, was not a skilled pianist. Much of the music here is of the kind of narrative nature that would seem to form the basis for songs, as the titles suggest. The three suites and the Piano Series are groups of works arranged in the style of Baroque suites, with appropriate use of counterpoint and frequent use of dance rhythms. This project comes across as a labor of love for pianist John Noel Roberts, who actually did graduate from Eastman. His playing is richly colored and relaxed, although he manages the tricky sounding contrapuntal sections with precision and grace. 5 Stars: A charming recital of solo piano music from a legendary song writer.