English born pianist Harold Bauer originally hoped to make his career as violinist but his piano playing so impressed Paderewski that he subsequntly focussed on that instrument. He had huge success in the USA and as a result became a US citizen in 1917. Bauer was not a crowd-pleasing virtuoso firebrand but rather a true musician; there is always a wonderful poetry to his art and he excelled in miniatures, such as the Grieg presented here, though his legendary recording of the Brahms f minor sonata (still a benchmark) shows he had the requisite virtuosity when needed. These new transfers by Ward Marston are the only ones currently available of Bauer’s legacy.

BACH Partita No 2 in C minor BWV826: Capriccio
BEETHOVEN Piano Sonata No 13 in E flat major Op 27 No 1: I.Andante;
Piano Sonata No 24 in F sharp major Op 78
SCHUMANN Faschingsschwank aus Wien Op 26: Allegro
LISZT Années de pèlerinage, première année – Suisse S160: Eglogue

MOSCHELES Etude Op 70 No 5
COCHRANE Le Ruisseau
BRAHMS Capriccio in B minor Op 76 No 2 
MENDELSSOHN Scherzo in E minor Op 16 No 2 

SCHÜTT Etude Mignonne in D major Op 16 No 1 

CD2

CHOPIN Ballade No 3 in A flat major Op 47; Scherzo No 2 in B flat minor Op 31; Waltz in A flat major Op 34 No 1; Polonaise in C sharp minor Op 26 No 1; Etude in E minor Op 25 No 5; Twenty-Four Preludes Op 28: Nos.23, 20 & 3
RACHMANINOV Prelude Op 23 No 5 G minor; Polichinelle Op 3 No 4
DEBUSSY Estampes: Jardins sous la pluie; Arabesque No 2 in G major
GARDINER Five Pieces: III. London Bridge; V. Gavotte

BOWEN Suite No 2 Op 30: Finale ‘A Romp’; The Way to Polden, An Ambling Tune, Op 76; Arabesque Op 20 No 1; Fragments from Hans Andersen Op 58: Thumbelina; The Windmill  (with spoken introductions)

J S BACH Sonata No.5 in f minor for Violin & Keyboard BWV1018 
         Live recording 2nd March 1939, Library of Congress, Washington
BRAHMS Sonata No.1 in G major for Violin & Piano Op.78 
         Live BBC Studio Recital 13th October 1936, Broadcasting House, London
BRAHMS Trio in E flat for Piano, Violin & Horn Op.40 (with AUBREY BRAIN horn)
         Recorded 16th May and 13th November 1933, Studio 3 Abbey Road. Previously unpublished except side 5 (of 8 originals)

To find three unpublished performances of high quality by the greatest violin and piano duo of the 20th century is luxury indeed. To be able to present seven previously unknown 78rpm sides featuring the legendary horn player Aubrey Brain is a bonus.
Pre-war live recordings are rare and all the more valuable because commercially recorded works were always limited by the four minute side length of a 78rpm disc meaning it was impossible for artists to record in long takes. In the two duos presented here we can hear the artists in full flight, unconstrained by the recording studio. We are also lucky in that the Bach Sonata was never otherwise recorded and is a valuable addition to their discography.
The Brahms Horn Trio is an unissued commercial recording with an unusual history. The complete work was recorded in May 1933 and approved for issue but at the factory mastering stage the master of side 5 was ‘cracked in process’ and could not be used. Unfortunately there had been only one take of that side so release of the recording was abandoned. The work was completely re-recorded in November of the same year and was commercially issued, but by that time Serkin was playing a Steinway instead of a Bechstein and Brain, who had accidentaly destroyed his Labbaye French Horn of 1865 vintage (the same year as the Brahms was written) by reversing his car over it, was playing a completely different instrument. Luckily Busch had a set of test pressings of all but the damaged 5th side and so we are able to present that original recording here for the first time. The missing side has been replaced by the later, commercially issued, recording which also gives us the chance to compare the tonal quality of the two versions.

1948 ‘Encores’
BACH arr Cortot “Aria” (Concerto in F minor, BWV1056 - Adagio);PURCELL arr Cortot “Minuet” (Harpsichord Suites 1 & 8 - Minuets); SCHUBERT arr Cortot Litanie; SCHUMANN Vogel als Prophet, Op.82/7; CHOPIN Nocturne in F sharp, Op.15/2; BRAHMS arr Cortot Wiegenlied
1947
FRANCK Prélude, Aria et Final (Previously Unpublished)
1949
DEBUSSY Préludes Book One
Appendix: 1948 ‘encores’ in LP version
BACH arr Cortot “Aria” (Concerto in F minor, BWV1056 - Adagio); PURCELL arr Cortot “Minuet” (Harpsichord Suites1 & 8 - Minuets); SCHUMANN Vogel als Prophet, Op.82/7

Although he was universally regarded as one of the greatest pianists of the last century, Cortot’s later recordings have had a bit of a bad press. Though he had a virtuoso technique it was fallible and the careless slips he was renowned for became more pronounced as he became older. It’s true that some embarrasing recordings exist and and a Beethoven sonata cycle went so badly it has never seen the light of day but in the right repertoire these aspects of his playing are not an issue and in recordings such as those presented here we can enjoy Cortot’s wonderful musicality without the need to make any allowance for a faltering technique The major work here is the complete first book of Debussy Préludes. This set, recorded in the last days of 78s, had only a limited life as LP technology arrived within a year and brought with it improved recording quality. The set was reissued as an LP in 1953, from a technical point of view already out of date, but of course nowadays this is of no consequence when we have the glory of Cortot’s playing to consider.

The Franck Prélude, Aria et Final from 1947 has not been previously issued though passed by Cortot himself. Only one set of test pressings is known to exist, and it is missing the second of six sides, so to make a complete performance we have dubbed in the second side of Cortot’s earlier 1932 recording of the work. Perhaps the gems of this collection are the series of ‘Encores’ which Cortot recorded in 1948. These works present the essence of Cortot’s style, his instantly recognizable singing line, his wonderful voicing of chords and the nobility of it all.It appears that when some of these titles were reissued on LP different takes, recorded on tape, were used so these versions are included as an appendix.

1949-51 CHOPIN

Nocturne No 2 in E flat major Op.9/2; Nocturne No 4 in F major Op 15/1; Nocturne No 7 in C sharp minor Op 27/1; Etude in E major Op 10/3; Etude in C sharp minor Op 10/4; Etude in F minor Op 25/2; Trois Nouvelles Etudes; Barcarolle in F sharp minor Op 60; Prelude No 15 in D flat major Op 28 (Raindrop); Prelude No 25 in C sharp minor Op 45; Berceuse in D flat major Op 57; Waltz No 3 in A minor Op 34/2; Waltz No 6 in D flat major Op 64/1 (Minute); Waltz No 9 in A flat major Op 69/1; Waltz No 9 in A flat major Op 69/1; Waltz No 11 in G flat major Op 70/1; Waltz No 12 in F minor Op 70/2

1950 MENDELSSOHN

Variations sérieuses in D minor Op 54

This third volume of Cortot’s late recordings once again shows that their neglect has been unjustified. Chopin has always been the composer with whom Cortot was most identified and here we have a wonderful selection of mainly popular works which show off the pianist’s trademark lyrical playing to the full. Of particular interest to collectors are the Chopin titles from 1951 which have generally not yet appeared on any CD transfer; six of these titles were issued in the UK only as 78’s or 45rpm discs, both formats that did not last, another five were only issued in the USA on a RCA Victor LP, but as the relationship between EMI and RCA ceased shortly after these too had a very short life in the catalogue. The CD is completed with a fine performance of the Mendelssohn Variations sérieuses, another Cortot favorite.

THE ITALIAN PIANIST Sergio Fiorentino excelled in many areas of the repertory, but he enjoyed a particularly close affinity with the music of Schumann. His effortless blend of a seemingly unimpeachable technique, a wonderful ability to sing a line, and a sense of strong but never overbearing characterization made him a natural for Schumann’s highly strung emotionalism. The four works included here, recorded over a mere two days in August 1965, show him equally at home in a work as outwardly modest as the Arabeske, and in the virtuosic Études symphoniques and Carnaval.

BACH - BUSONI Prelude & Fugue in D, BWV 532 • SCHUMANN Fantasie Op17

BEETHOVEN Sonata Op110 • CHOPIN Sonata 2 • SCRIABIN Sonata 4

Liszt - Gounod • J.Strauss II - Tausig • J.Strauss - Godowsky
The programme contains some of the most demanding repertoire...I was not
prepared for such brilliant, grand playing, a throwback to the golden days of Lhévinne, Godowsky and Hofmann. Newport Life (USA)

We continue our comprehensive survey of the many great pianists who worked in Russia in the Soviet era with the first two discs in the Igumnov School. The bulk of the issues will be divided into 'schools' which represent the three main teachers of this period - Neuhaus, Goldenweiser and Igumnov, - and their pupils. Igumnov was the oldest of the thre great teachers we are considering.

Flier arrived at the Moscow Conservatiore a prodigy and rapidly went on to become one of the greatest of Igumnov's many pupils. He had a friendly rivalry with Emil Gilels, beating him in competition in 1935, only for the roles to be reversed in the Queen Elizabeth Competition of 1938.  In many ways his career mimicked that of his teacher Igumnov, as Flier also taught at the Moscow Conservatiore from an early age until his death and produced many illustrious pupils, though perhaps his own fame, at least internationally, suffered as a result.
Flier had a large repertoire and specialized particularly in the great works of the Romantic period which suited his all-encompassing, but undemonstrative, technique. Unfortunately he made surprisingly few recordings though all we have are very fine. Of particular interest here is the world premiere recording of Kabalevsky's 24 Preludes Op.34, a work Flier also premiered in concert. These and all the other material included, are new to CD.

These four titles are the first in a comprehensive survey of the many great pianists who worked in Russia in the Soviet era. The bulk of the issues will be divided into 'schools' which represent the three main teachers of this period - Neuhaus, Goldenweiser and Igumnov, - and their pupils. We begin with perhaps the greatest of these - Neuhaus, and two of his pupils - Emil Gilels & Yakov Zak.

Along with Sviatoslav Richter (to feature later) Emil Gilels was regarded as the greatest of the Soviet pianists and, as he was allowed to travel to the west, he become know as one of the supreme pianists of the 20th century. Latterly he became known as a great player of Beethoven & Brahms. Here, in a selection of his earliest recordings, we see a different side to his talent as he reveals an astonishing virtuosity in such warhorses as the Liszt Hungarian Rhapsodies and the Schumann Toccata. Balancing the recital we also present the earliest of what were to be many Beethoven recordings and a performance of Prokofiev’s 2nd Sonata which reminds us why he was the dedicatee of that composer’s 8th, and greatest, Sonata.    

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART (1756–1791)
arranged by FERRUCCIO BUSONI (1866–1924)
Overture ‘The Magic Flute’ for two pianos (K620)
Fantasia in F minor for two pianos (Fantasie für eine Orgelwalze after K608) 
Duettino Concertante for two pianos (after Concerto K459 finale)
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART (1756–1791)
Fugue in C minor for two pianos, K426 
Concerto for two pianos and orchestra in E flat K365
(with USSR STATE ORCHESTRA / KYRILL KONDRASHIN)
CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS (1835–1921)
Variations for two pianos on a theme of Beethoven Op 35

These four titles are the first in a comprehensive survey of the many great pianists who worked in Russia in the Soviet era. The bulk of the issues will be divided into 'schools' which represent the three main teachers of this period - Neuhaus, Goldenweiser and Igumnov, - and their pupils. We begin with perhaps the greatest of these - Neuhaus, and two of his pupils - Emil Gilels & Yakov Zak.

That Gilels and Zak began performing together is perhaps not surprising as they both grew up in Odessa and then moved to Moscow to study with Neuhaus, however it was probably the Second World War, and their confinement to the Soviet Union where there was a need for morale boosting concerts, which brought the duo together in a partnership which lasted about ten years. With the exception of a performance of Carnival of the Animals their complete recordings are featured here, and a fascinating selection they are. Gilels was one of the few Russian pianists who played Mozart successfully and these recordings, either as original works, or transcribed by Busoni, present both pianists revelling in an easy virtuosity and joie-de-vivre. The disc is completed with Saint-Saëns’ masterly ‘Variations on a theme of Beethoven’, a work less well known than it should be - or would be, were it not written for two pianos. Perhaps surprisingly, its very French brilliance seems particularly suited to these two Russians! 

These three titles inaugurate the Goldenweiser School, the last of the three great teaching traditions to be covered in this comprehensive survey of the many great pianists who worked in Russia in the Soviet era. Along with Goldenweiser himself we start with Nikolayeva and Ginzburg. The bulk of the issues in THE RUSSIAN PIANO TRADITION will be divided into 'schools' which represent the three main teachers of this period - Neuhaus, Goldenweiser and Igumnov, - and their pupils.

Alexander Goldenweiser was born in 1875 and studied at the Moscow Conservatoire with the great generation that included Rachmaninov, Scriabin and Medtner. Though a fine pianist, he quickly gravitated towards teaching and had an astonishing 55 year reign at his alma mater until his death in 1961. During this period he twice acted as the Conservatoire’s Director – from 1922-24 (as the first post-revolution director) and between 1939 and1942. Goldenweiser was to exert a profound influence upon more than 200 pianists among whom the most celebrated are Grigory Ginzburg, Samuil Feinberg, Rosa Tamarkina and Tatiana Nikolayeva (all of whom will be represented in this series) as well as Lazar Berman, Dmitri Bashkirov, Isabella Vengerova, Oxana Yablonskaya and Dmitri Paperno. 
During the last 15 years of his life Goldenweiser recorded quite prolifically but most of this work was for the radio and only released subsequent to his death. For LP he recorded all Rachmaninov’s two-piano music with his pupil Ginzburg, a fair bit of Russian chamber music and, as a solo player, amongst other things, the first complete recording of Grieg’s Lyric Pieces, some of which are included here.

2CDs
CD 1 
CHOPIN Étude in C sharp minor Op 10 No 4;  Étude in G flat major ‘Black key’ Op 10 No 5; Étude in F major Op 10 No 8; Étude in F major Op 25 No 3; Mazurka in F minor Op 7 No 3; Mazurka in E minor Op 41 No 2; Mazurka in C sharp minor Op 50 No 3; Scherzo No 4 in E major Op 54; Sonata No 2 in B flat minor Op 35 First movement; LISZT Funérailles Harmonies poétiques et réligieuses, S173 No 7; Sonata in B minor S178
CD 2
D SCARLATTI Sonata in B minor Kk87; Sonata in G major Kk125; BACH–BUSONI Nun freut euch, lieben Christen gmein BWV734; HAYDN Sonata in E flat major Hob XVI/52; BEETHOVEN 32 Variations on an original theme in C minor WoO80; SCHUMANN Presto passionato in G minor;  Arabeske in C major Op 18; Traumes Wirren (Fantasiestücke), Op 12 No 7; Toccata in C major Op 7; DEBUSSY Étude XI: Pour les arpèges composés; POULENC Pastourelle; Toccata (Trois pièces pour piano, No 2); RIMSKY-KORSAKOV/RACHMANINOV The Flight of the Bumble-bee;  STRAVINSKY Danse Russe (Petrushka); RACHMANINOV Prelude in G minor Op 23 No 5; PROKOFIEV Toccata in C major Op 11

These two CDs contain some of the most impressive piano playing ever commited to disc and are a must for every pianophile’s collection. They capture the young Horowitz just after his sensational arrival in the west and, apart from a few 78s made in the previous two years in the US, they are his earliest solo recordings. Though most of the chosen pieces were short enough to fit onto a 78rpm side Horowitz did record the Liszt Sonata, a performance which quickly achieved a legendary status.
Unique to APR is the originally unissued performance of the the first movement of Chopin’s Sonata in B flat minor, all the remains of a projected recording of the complete work. The Prokofiev Toccata was also originally unissued and is not otherwise currently available.

Self-respecting pianophiles will already have most of these seminal recordings. But, compared with earlier issues, APR reveal a fuller, richer piano sound where every nuance is crystal clear and in a judiciously-enhanced ambience...APR's presentation,as usual, leaves its peers standing, fully worthy of the great artist enshrined in these magical recordings. Classic CD

FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN
Mazurka No 33 in B major Op 56 No 1
recorded in Moscow in 1935
ALEXANDER SCRIABIN
Poème in F sharp major Op 32 No 1
recorded in Moscow in 1935
ROBERT SCHUMANN
Kreisleriana Op 16
recorded in Moscow in 1941
PETER TCHAIKOVSKY
The Months Op 37b
recorded in Moscow in 1947

We continue our comprehensive survey of the many great pianists who worked in Russia in the Soviet era with the first two discs in the Igumnov School. The bulk of the issues will be divided into 'schools' which represent the three main teachers of this period - Neuhaus, Goldenweiser and Igumnov, - and their pupils. Igumnov was the oldest of the three great teachers we are considering.

Though less well known than the first of our great Russian pedagogues (Heinrich Neuhaus on APR5560), Konstantin Igumnov had an equally illustrious career as pianist and teacher. An exact contemporary of Rachmaninov, he studied with the same teachers and the two were good friends, Igumnov championed much contemporary music by his Russian compatriots and gave the premiers of Rachmaninov's first piano sonata and Glazunov's first piano concerto to name but two examples.
He taught from an early age and was appointed to the Moscow Conservatoire in 1899 where he remained until his death in 1948; between 1924 and 1929 he was appointed principal. Among his over 600 pupils were Alexandrov, Oborin, Flier, Davidovich, Tamarkina and Grinberg.
Sadly he recorded very little and what there is comes from near the end of his life. A live recital taped the year before his death, when he was suffering from flu, does not do him justice and is not represented here, but much of the rest of his recorded output is included and reveals him to be a true romantic whose playing is passionate and focused on the singing line but perhaps larger in scale than the Neuhaus style. Few of his recordings have ever been easily available and this CD fills an important gap in the history of Russian pianism.

SCHUBERT/LISZT Soirée de Vienne 6 S427; recorded on 17 July 1939

Grandes Études de Paganini S141:

No 2 Octave; recorded on 27 January 1942

No 3 La campanella; No 5 La chasse; recorded on 9 & 13 September 1946

La leggierezza S144/2; recorded on 10 July 1939

Gnomenreigen S145/2; recorded on 3 September 1941

Liebestraüm No 3 S54; recorded on 3 September 1941

Feux-follets S139/5 (Transcendental Etude No 5); recorded on 23 March 1937

Venezia e Napoli S162 Année de pèlerinage 2 supplement:

Gondoliera; Tarantella;  recorded on 30 March 1938

R.W.-Venezia S201; recorded on 10 November 1951

En reve—nocturne S207; recorded on 10 November 1951

Czárdás macabre S224; recorded on 10 November 1951

recorded on 7 March 1939

Though Hungarian by birth, and having studied at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest, Louis Kentner, like so many others of Jewish origin, immigrated to London in the mid 1930s, aware that central Europe was not the best place to be at that time for someone of his race. He was to remain in London for the rest of his life, becoming very much part of British musical life both as pianist and, later, as teacher.
His somewhat sensational London debut took place in the Aeolian Hall in October 1936 where he gave an all Liszt recital. As a direct result he was signed up by HMV and over the next fifteen years, in addition to much other repertoire, he made a large number of Liszt recordings which featured not only the often recorded etudes and Hungarian Rhapsodies but also premiere recordings of many of Liszt's more important, but then less well known, larger works. Our first APR title (APR5514) featured such unusual works as the Scherzo & March, the Berceuse and the first Polonaise; on the current disc, in addition to a number of the well known aforementioned etudes, we find a group of late pieces, including the bizarre Czárdás Macabre, which was only published in the year of its recording, and the Meyerbeer/Liszt 'Les Patineurs' scherzo. This later piece is one of Liszt's most brilliant operatic transcriptions, but is strangely little known. It is perhaps Kentner's most stunning recording and a fitting way to end this fascinating recital.

SCRIABIN Piano Sonata No.5, Op.53; recorded Moscow c.1956

This title continues the Goldenweiser School, the last of the three great teaching traditions to be covered in this comprehensive survey of the many great pianists who worked in Russia in the Soviet era. The bulk of the issues in THE RUSSIAN PIANO TRADITION will be divided into 'schools' which represent the three main teachers of this period - Neuhaus, Goldenweiser and Igumnov, - and their pupils.

One of the youngest pianists to be featured in this series, Victor Merzhanov is more a grand-pupil of Goldenweiser than a pupil, as his major professor was Samuil Feinberg. It seems certain though, that while studying with one of Goldenweiser's most illustrious pupils he would also have had contact with the great man. Merzhanov graduated from the Moscow conservatory in 1942 and, after war service, shared first prize in the 1945 All-Union piano competition with Sviatoslav Richter. He began teaching at the Moscow Conservatoire in 1947 and, at the age of 90, continues to teach and serve on competition juries today. Merzhanov quickly became renowned as a Rachmaninov interpreter and his recording of the Third Concerto is one of the greatest, he also made the first recording of Prokofiev's Sixth Sonata. He was most prolific in the recording studio in the 1950's and his performances are characterised by peerless technique (witness the Liszt 'Paganini' Studies included here) and a generous, but never self-serving, emotional involvement with the music. Once again the quality of the playing revealed here shows that our view of who are the 'greats' of Soviet pianism has been very much dictated by those performers who had careers in the west. As this series of CDs has shown, Gilels and Richter were not isolated peaks; the likes of Oborin, Zak, and here, Merzhanov, were certainly their musical equals.

These four titles are the first in a comprehensive survey of the many great pianists who worked in Russia in the Soviet era. The bulk of the issues will be divided into 'schools' which represent the three main teachers of this period - Neuhaus, Goldenweiser and Igumnov, - and their pupils. We begin with perhaps the greatest of these - Neuhaus, and two of his pupils - Emil Gilels & Yakov Zak.

Heinrich Neuhaus was born in the Ukraine to a German father and Polish mother. His parents were music teachers and he took to music from an early age making his debut aged fourteen, from then on he rapidly made a name for himself both as a performer and teacher. Always an erratic, nervous performer in public, teaching gradually took precedence over his concert activities and he gave his Farewell Recital in Moscow in 1949. He was the leading piano professor at the Moscow Conservatoire from 1922 to 1964, and Director there between 1935 and 1937.
Neuhaus is now best remembered for his incredible list of pupils; Gilels, Richter, Zak , his son Stanislav, as well as Bakst, Brumberg, Goldfarb, Krainev, Kvapil, Lupu, Naumov, Nasedkin, Slobodyanik, Vedernikov, Versaladze, and Zhukov to name a few, however he also made a great many recordings, very few of which have been issued in the west.
They reveal a most poetic pianist, ideally attuned to Chopin or to the smaller scale Scriabin presented here. His Beethoven reveals a musical integrity which takes us to the heart of the composer. Above all Neuhaus reveals the musical value of a work rather than its superficial effect and it is no doubt this spiritual response to music which he was able to impart to his pupils, making him such an inspiring and successful teacher.

We have already featured Lev Oborin (on APR6005) playing Rachmaninov's second and third Concertos, and that he was entrusted with the first ever Soviet recordings of these works shows the status he held at that time. He studied with Igumnov at the Moscow Conservatory from the age of 14 and in 1927, at the age of 19, he won the first Chopin competition. From this time on until his death he was central to Russian musical life both as performer and teacher (he taught Vladimir Ashkenazy amongst many others).

Oborin was the 'complete' pianist. He had a magnificent technique and seemed to be able to play any style of repertoire convincingly. He was also equally at home as soloist or chamber player, indeed in the West he is still perhaps better known as accompanist to the great violinist David Oistrakh due to the recordings they made together.

The present CD presents Oborin as classicist in Beethoven, as the great Chopin interpreter, as virtuoso in the Liszt Rhapsody and as Russian lyricist in the Tchaikovsky. He is magnificent in all.

The complete HMV Recordings 1937 & 1938

HAYDN Variations in F minor Hob XVII:6 recorded on 29 January 1937

MOZART Rondo in A minor K511 recorded on 30 January 1937

BEETHOVEN Piano Sonata No 14 in C sharp minor ‘Moonlight’ Op 27/2 recorded on 30 January 1937

SCHUBERT Moment musical No 2 in A flat major D780 recorded on 15 November 1938

CHOPIN Nocturne No 5 in F sharp major Op 15/2 recorded on 30 January 1937

CHOPIN Nocturne No 17 in B major Op 62/1 recorded on 15 November 1938

CHOPIN Waltz No 7 in C sharp minor Op 64/2 recorded on 15 November 1938

CHOPIN Mazurka No 38 in F sharp minor Op 59/3 recorded on 15 November 1938

CHOPIN Polonaise No 6 in A flat major Op 53 recorded on 30 January 1937

WAGNER/LISZT Tristan und Isolde: Liebestod S447 recorded on 15 November 1938

PADEREWSKI Chants du voyageur Op 8 - No 3 Mélodie recorded on 15 November 1938

PADEREWSKI Humoresques de concert Op 14 - No 1 Minuet célèbre recorded on 30 January 1937

A year ago we issued, to great critical acclaim, a double album of Paderewski’s first recordings, made in Europe in 1911-12 (APR6006). Between 1914 and 1931 the pianist recorded for Victor in the US but in 1937, after it appeared Paderewski had retired from the studio, he was persuaded to return to the HMV studios in London to make a final series of recordings. At first the plan was to record the repertoire which featured in the film ‘Moonlight Sonata’, a huge blockbuster success at the time which featured Paderewski playing himself, but in addition to this repertoire Paderewski went on to record works by Haydn and Mozart which were new to his discography. It has often been said that in later life Paderewski’s technique was not what it had been, and to an extent the is undoubtedly true, but this is not an issue in the classical works featured here, and the Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven in particular reveal the extreme poetry that had mesmerised audiences for fifty years and had made Paderewski the most famous pianist of his generation.

This is the first time all Paderewski’s 1930’s HMV recordings have been assembled together and two unissued tracks from the 1938 sessions are also included.

2CDs
RACHMANINOV: Piano Concertos & ‘Paganini Rhapsody’ - THE PREMIERE SOVIET LP RECORDINGS

Compact Disc 1
SVIATOSLAV RICHTER

Piano Concerto No 1 in F sharp minor Op 1

USSR RTV LARGE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA conducted by KURT SANDERLING

recorded in Moscow in 1955

YAKOV ZAK

Piano Concerto No 4 in G minor Op 40

MOSCOW SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA conducted by KYRILL KONDRASHIN

recorded in Moscow in 1954

Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini Op 43

USSR STATE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA conducted by KYRILL KONDRASHIN

recorded in Moscow in 1952

Compact Disc 2
LEV OBORIN

Piano Concerto No 2 in C minor Op 18

RADIO ORCHESTRA conducted by ALEXANDER GAUK

recorded in Moscow in 1947

Piano Concerto No 3 in D minor Op 30

USSR STATE ORCHESTRA conducted by KONSTANTIN IVANOV

recorded in Moscow in 1949

To launch our new series devoted to the Russian Piano Tradition we have compiled a special issue which gathers together the first Russian recordings of all the Rachmaninov concertos.
Apart from Richter's 1st Concerto these recordings have been little known in the west, yet every one of them features playing of virtuosity and passion rarely equalled to this day. Yakov Zak is somewhat forgotten today as his career was mainly confined to the Soviet Union, yet he was one of Neuhaus’ greatest pupils and went on to become a great teacher at the Moscow Conservatoire himself. His recording of Rachmaninov’s 4th Concerto was only the second to be made after the composer’s own. Lev Oborin was a pupil of Konstantin Igumnov (to feature later in this series) and won first prize at the inaugural Chopin Competition in 1927. That he was entrusted with first recordings of the second and third concertos shown the esteem in which he was held at the time. His recording of the second from 1947 was only the third LP to be issued in Russia.

STEVENSON plays STEVENSON - Passacaglia on DSCH,  original 1964 recording

Passacaglia on DSCH 

British composer and pianist Ronald Stevenson was 80 in March this year and to celebrate we are issuing his near legendary first recording of his magnum opus, the Passacaglia on DSCH. Originally issued in 1964 in a limited edition of 100 2LP sets, this performance has never since been available and has been much sought after by collectors.

Stevenson has remained somewhat outside the mainstream of British 20th century music as he has maintained the tradition of composer/pianist. He is a magnificent performer himself, and sees himself as most influenced by the likes of Busoni and Grainger.
Born in Lancashire he studied in Manchester but has lived for over 50 years in West Linton, Scotland.

The Passacaglia on DSCH has been described as the longest single movement in the piano literature (75' in this performance) and is based on a seven bar theme derived from the musical notes (in German notation) contained in the name Dmitri Schostakovich.  The work was completed in 1962 and a copy presented to the Russian composer at the Edinburgh Festival that year.  It is one of those works which seems much shorter than its length, such is the onward drive of its kaleidoscopically brilliant material. The countless variations include, amongst others, sections organised as suite, nocturne, pibroch, etudes and culminate in a triple fugue which combines the DSCH motive with BACH and the Dies Irae! This is a work in the tradition which runs from Bach’s Art of Fugue through Busoni’s Fantasia Contrapuntistica to Sorabji’s Opus Clavicembalisticum.

Jacques Thibaud was the pre-eminent French violinist on the first half of the 2oth Century and although he is now probably best remembered as a chamber musician, particularly in the legendary Cortot, Thibaud and Casals Trio, he also had a major career as a solo violinist. This pair of CDs features all his electrical recordings of music for violin and piano which does not fall into the catagory of chamber music for equal partners such as his Beethoven, Franck and Debussy sonata recordings with Cortot. Thibaud’s great strengh was his cantabile playing and much is in evidence in this delightful collection.
Unfortunately Thibaud did not make all that many recordings with orchestra and although he set down a 78rpm version of the Lalo Symphonie Espagnol it was never issued. We are therefore very lucky that the archives of Swiss Radio contained acetate discs of the live performance presented here. This piece was particulary associated with Thibaud and he gives a wonderful performance, in sound much better than we might expect from such a source.

Two dozen encore pieces with piano, plus a terrific live version of Lalo's Symphonie espagnole recorded in 1941...Most of the great French violinist's musical calling cards are here, performed with his usual suavity and chic...An absolute must for violin fanciers. Now! (USA)

W. A. MOZART Piano Sonata in B flat major K333
F. SCHUBERT Piano Sonata in A major D664
R. SCHUMANN Fantasie in C Op.17

This attractive recital of masterworks from the piano repertiore shows off Valerie Tryon’s skill to the full. Her elegance is perfect for Mozart and the poetry of the Schubert and Schumann pieces is equally well caught in performaces to match the best.
Since Valerie’s move to Canada she has rather slipped from the limelight in the UK where she used to be a stalwart of the BBC recording studio and a regular guest with orchestras across the land, however, as her recent release of Mendelssohn shows (Julian Haylock described it as ‘without doubt the finest Mendelssohn recital ever recorded’ (Classic FM magazine)), it is perhaps our loss.

Piano Concerto No 24 in C minor K491 (cadenza - Leopold Godowsky) 

Rondo in A major K386 (edition: Tyson & Mackerras)

Piano Concerto No 25 in C major K 503 (cadenza - Hummel)
Appendix

3CDs
COMPACT DISC 1 The Early Years 1827–1835 (77.13)
Andante spianato & Grande Polonaise brillante in E flat major Op 22; Nocturne in B flat minor Op 9/1; Nocturne in F major Op 15/1; Nocturne in F sharp major Op 15/2; 6 Nocturne in G minor Op 15/3; Bolero in C major Op 19; Mazurka in B flat major Op 7/1; Mazurka in C major Op 7/5; Mazurka in A minor Op 17/4; Ballade in G minor Op 23; Marche funèbre in C minor Op 72/2; Waltz in E minor Op posth; Waltz in A flat major ‘L’Adieu’ Op 69/1; Études Op 10  No 3 in E major; No 4 in C sharp minor; No 5 in G flat; No 12 in C minor
COMPACT DISC 2 The Middle Years 1835–1841 (78.03)
Scherzo in B flat minor Op 31; Nocturne in D flat major Op 27/2; Allegro de Concert in A major Op 46; Waltz in F major Op 34/3; Waltz in A flat major Op 42; Sonata No 2 in B flat minor ‘Funeral March’ Op 35; Mazurka in D major Op 33/2; Scherzo in C sharp minor Op 39; Études Op 25 No 1 in A flat major; No 2 in F minor; No 11 in A minor; No 12 in C minor
COMPACT DISC 3 The Final Years 1841–1849 (79.50)
Berceuse in D flat major Op 57; Fantaisie in F minor Op 49; Nocturne in F minor Op 55/1; Nocturne in E flat major Op 55/2; Sonata No 3 in B minor Op 58; Barcarolle in F sharp major Op 60; Ballade in F minor Op 52; Mazurka in F minor Op 63/2; Mazurka in F minor Op 68/4; Polonaise in A flat major ‘Heroic’ Op 53

These new recordings were recorded at St. Georges's Brandon Hill, Bristol and give a comprehensive overview of Chopin's output from his earliest published work until his death. Of course there is no shortage of fine Chopin recording available but in Valerie Tryon we have a pianist whose refined elegance,and  effortless technique, make her the perfect Chopin interpreter. Listening to these performances one is reminded time and again of descriptions of Chopin’s own playing - this is an essentially lyrical approach with an easy natural rubato and constant emphasis on the melodic aspect. Tryon may not be the most famous of pianists but don’t forget, her recent Mendelssohn recording (APR5595) was described by critic Julian Haylock as ‘without doubt, the finest Mendelssohn recital ever recorded’.

Three Compact Discs. Please note the special price for this product!

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770–1827)

Piano Sonata No 12 in A flat major Op 26 (recorded in Moscow c1958)

Piano Sonata No 28 in A flat major Op 101 (recorded in Moscow c1958)

Piano Sonata No 29 in B flat major Op 106 ‘Hammerklavier’ (recorded in Moscow c1954)

Compact Disc 1: Acoustic Recordings (71.53) Recorded early 1920s

CHOPIN: Waltz in A-Flat, Op.69 No.1; Waltz in B Minor, Op.69 No.2; Waltz in C-Sharp Minor, Op.64 No.2; Nocturne in B, Op.32 No.1; Etude in F Minor, Op.25 No.2; Etude in G-Flat, Op.25 No.9; Etude in A-Flat, Op.25 No.1 Waltz in D-Flat, Op.64 No.1;
LISZT Consolations Nos.1, 2, 3 & 5; RAFF La Fileuse, Op.157 No.2;

SGAMBATI Prelude in E-Flat Minor, Op.6; SCARLATTI/TAUSIG Pastorale (Sonata, K.478);

PERGOLESI/ZADORA Arietta, Se tu m'ami, se sospiri; BEETHOVEN/BUSONI Ecossaises;

CHOPIN Preludes Op.28 Nos.6, 7, 13 & 23; CHOPIN Mazurka in A Minor, Op.67 No.4;

RUBINSTEIN Romance in E-Flat, Op.44 No.1; BRAHMS Intermezzo in B-Flat Minor, Op.117 No.2;

FIELD Nocturne No.5 in B-Flat; AMADIS The Prima Ballerina; AMADIS Vienna Waltz;

Compact Disc 2: Electrical Recordings (66.51) Recorded 1929 - 1938

CHOPIN Waltz in D-Flat, Op.64 No.1; CHOPIN Waltz in C-Sharp Minor, Op.64 No.2;

PROKOFIEV Prelude in C, Op.12 No.7; LAMARE La Passion;
DELIBES/ZADORA Valse lente, from Sylvia; JENSEN/ZADORA Murmuring Zephyrs Op.21 No.4;
BACH (attrib.) Sarabande e Partita in C, BWV 990 (abridged);

DEBUSSY Prelude & Toccata from Pour le piano; BUSONI Sonatina No.6, after Bizet's Carmen;

OFFENBACH/ZADORA Barcarolle, from Tales of Hoffmann; AMADIS Meine Puppe Tanzt;

HENSELT/ZADORA Larghetto, from Concerto in F Minor, Op.16; HUMMEL Rondo in E-Flat, Op.11;

DELIBES/ZADORA Valse lente, from Coppélia; DELIBES/ZADORA Pizzicati, from Sylvia;

BUSONI Sonatina No.3 "Ad usum infantis"; BUSONI: Sonatina No.5 "In diem nativitatis Christi"

Michael Zadora is one of the most obscure pianists to have recorded prolifically in the 78rpm era. Only a handful of 78s have ever been reissued, and no LP or CD has ever been devoted to him. It would appear that his concert career was also not particularly high profile, yet from these recordings it seems he was a very significant artist. Perhaps the answer lies in his background. He was born in New York of aristocratic Polish parents but returned to Europe to study and was a pupil of Leshetizky and Barth (who also taught Rubinstein). After the First World War he became a disciple of Busoni and indeed played for the great artist on his deathbed. Zadora seems to have been a rather reserved character, much more an intellectual than someone who enjoyed public performance and it is likely that family wealth allowed him the luxury of not having to pursue his career too aggressively. On the other hand, studio recording suited him very well indeed, and he seems equally at home in the standard repertoire, such as Chopin, and in more rarefied material, such as the Busoni Sonatinas, where we are undoubtedly hearing an interpretation very close to that of the composer himself. Of particular interest are Zadora's own unusual transcriptions and also the works of 'Pietro Amadis' who was actually a pseudonym of the pianist.

These very rare recordings should be of particular interest to all lovers of historic piano playing.