11 MP3 Songs in this album (66:49) !
Related styles: Classical: Chopin, Classical: Piano solo, Featuring Piano

People who are interested in Emil Gilels Grigory Sokolov Sviatoslav Richter should consider this download.


Details:
HISTORICAL PIANO RECITAL SERIES, VOL. III

STEVEN SPOONER--PIANIST

1. Schumann, Romanze in F# Major, Op. 28 no. 2

2. Schubert/Liszt, Aufenthalt

3. Schubert/Liszt, Ständchen, from Schwanengesang

4. Liszt, Hungarian Rhapsody no. 13 in A Minor

5. Chopin, Mazurka in C# Minor, Op. 6 no. 2

6. Chopin, Mazurka in F Minor, Op. 7 no. 3

7. Chopin, Mazurka in A Minor, Op. 17 no. 4

8. Chopin, Polonaise-Fantasie in A-Flat Major, Op. 61

9. Spooner, Etude

10. Spooner, Etude-Toccata

11. Bolcom, Serpentâs Kiss from Garden of Eden (1970)




Liner Notes--

In 1885 legendary pianist Anton Rubinstein inaugurated a series of celebrated solo piano recitals entitled 'Historical Recitals'. In these monstrously outsized concerts (some, up to three hours in length) Rubinstein established the boundaries of the standard piano repertoire and cemented his dominance as one of the greatest living pianists since Liszt. From October 2003 through roughly October 2006 I made it a goal to recreate (in my own way) the series of historical recitals of the great Anton Rubinstein. This series of recitals was also a way of paying homage to my more contemporary heroes such as Artur Rubinstein and Sviatoslav Richter who both performed 'series' of concerts displaying the many facets of their gifts in a variety of repertoire and with great stylistic breadth. Ultimately, I performed some 16 different recital programs but falling short of my intended goal of 18 recitals. Most of these recitals were devoted to works of a single composer and I must confess it was my most fulfilling time at the instrument. Unlike Anton Rubinstein, I was not seeking to set a definitive stamp on the repertoire. Instead, it amounted to an act of tremendous love of music and the art of the piano combined with a sense of masochistic self-improvement. With each recital I attempted to enter the composer's world with hours of listening to their chamber, vocal, orchestral music (if applicable) and reading as much as I could about their lives, loves, and legacies. I wanted to forget what I sought to achieve in this music--forget how this piece might make me sound and yield myself not only to the work but the composer's aesthetic. It is this quality I so appreciate in Richter's playing. Like Richter, one of my goals was to sound like a different pianist in different repertoire with differing touches, freedoms, and aesthetic values.

The music on this CD represents the programs I played but in certain cases the performances are taken from earlier attempts that happen to be recorded with more fidelity or that just happen to be better. As you can hear, with a few exceptions, the majority of the disc is recorded live and with a live performance there are bound to be noises etc. which can compromise the listening experience. I ask that the listener of this disc be sympathetic to the fact that none of these tracks were initially professionally engineered and I was often at the mercy of a whole host of inferior pianos, noisy audiences, worn-out tapes, indifferent mic placements, etc.
The Schumann Romanze in F# Major, Op. 28 no. 2 was once a very popular piece among artists of the âgolden ageâ but I am perplexed as to why this intensely lyrical work has somehow been forgotten by todayâs pianists. The contrasting Schubert/Liszt song transcriptions show Liszt at his most inventiveâfrom the brooding setting of Aufenthalt to the ingenious Ständchen (a piece Liszt performed often and arranged in several different ways) that Liszt transforms from a simple strophic song to a love duet culminating in a magic three-hand miracle. The Hungarian Rhapsodie no. 13, unlike many others, is not based only on Gypsy and/or Hungarian tunes but features Jewish themes in the extended Lassan opening.
The Chopin selections represent my favorite works of the Polish genius--the ever-fascinating Mazurkas depict the drones of Polish Folk Music (Op. 6 no. 2 and Op. 7 no. 3) as well as a startlingly original and chromatic harmonic language (Op. 17 no. 4) and his crowning achievement in a large form and an interpreterâs challenging lyrical test, the great Polonaise-Fantasie, Op. 61. My own Etudes are a work in progress. My goal in writing them is simply to attempt to capture the sound, touch, and gestures of another pianist. The first Etude for Keith Jarrett requires the performer to freely improvise an introduction and eventually incorporate the tune My Funny Valentine into the piece. Like Keith Jarrett, every single performance must be a new experience and never repeat any patterns or worked out passages. A performance may vary from 3 to 20 minutes. The Etude-Toccata grew out of my love for Martha Argerich and her scintillating passage-work and incomparable repeated notes. I wanted to create a work that would capture Argerich's intensity, abandon, Latin roots, and make a nod to pieces for which she was famous, particularly the Scarlatti Toccata (K. 141), Gaspard de la Nuit of Ravel, and the Prokofiev Toccata op. 11.
The last track is the Bolcom crowd-pleaser, the Serpentâs Kiss from his suite Garden of Eden. In it Bolcom tells the story of Adam and Eveâs seduction by the serpent in a ragtime idiom and it incorporates foot stomps, stop time, (the pianist is required to tap the instrument and click their tongue) and a thrilling passacaglia-like coda with whistling and even more stomping!


PROGRAMS OF THE HISTORIC RECITAL SERIES


FREDERIC CHOPIN, I
Waltz in E-Flat Major, op. 18
Nocturne in E-Flat Major, op. 9 no. 2
Waltz in A-Flat Major, op. 69 no. 1
Etude in A-Flat Major, op. 25 no. 1
Etude in F Minor, op. 25 no. 2
Etude in C Major, op. 10 no. 1
Etude in C Minor, op. 10 no. 12
Etude in C Minor, op. 25 no. 12
Four Mazurkas op. 24
Scherzo in B-Flat Minor, op. 31

DOMENICO SCARLATTI
SONATAS FOR KEYBOARD
Sonata in A Major, K. 208
Sonata in A Major, K. 209
Sonata in G Major, K. 455
Sonata in E-Flat Major, K. 474
Sonata in A Major, K. 342
Sonata in A Minor, K. 149
Sonata in F Minor, K. 184
Sonata in F Minor, K. 239
Sonata in D Minor, K. 213
Sonata in D Minor, K. 141
Sonata in C Major, K. 132
Sonata in C Minor, K. 84
Sonata in C Major, K. 515

FRANZ LISZT, I
from Transcendental Etudes
no. 1, Preludio
no. 3, Paysage
no. 4, Mazeppa
no. 11, Harmonies du Soir
no. 8, Wilde Jagd
Sonata in B Minor

FRANZ JOSEPH HAYDN
Sonata in D Major, Hob. XVI/19
Sonata in C Major, Hob. XVI/48
Sonata in E-Flat Major, Hob. XVI/49

FRANZ JOSEPH HAYDN, II
Sonata in A-Flat Major, Hob. XVI/46
Sonata in G Major, Hob. XVI/40
Sonata in B Minor, Hob. XVI/32

JOHANNES BRAHMS
Two Rhapsodies, op. 79
Capriccio in G Minor, op. 116 no. 3
Intermezzo in E Major, op. 116 no. 4
Capriccio in D Minor, op. 116 no. 7
Intermezzo in E-Flat Minor, op. 118 no. 6
Variations on a Theme of Handel, op. 24

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART
Fantasie in D Minor, K. 397
Sonata in E-Flat Major, K. 282
Variations from Sonata in A Major, K. 331
Sonata in C Major, K. 330

RUSSIANS
Alexander Scriabin
Preludes, op. 11
no. 14
no. 15
no. 17
no. 21
Preludes, op 16
no. 1
no. 3
Etude in D-Sharp Minor, op. 8 no. 12
Sergei Rachmaninov
Etude-Tableaux op. 33
no. 1
no. 6
Etude-Tableaux op. 39
no. 9
Sergei Prokofiev
Sonata no. 6 in A Major, op. 82

HUNGARIANS
Franz Schubert
Hungarian Melody
Bela Bartok
Bulesque no. 1
15 Hungarian Peasant Songs
Strauss/Dohnanyi
Paraphrase of Schatzwalzer
Gyorgy Ligeti
Two Pieces from Musica Ricercata
Franz Liszt
Hungarian Rhapsody no. 13

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN, I
Sonata in F Minor, op. 2 no. 1
Sonata in C Minor, op. 10 no. 1
Sonata in E-Flat Major, op. 7

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN, II
Sonata in A-Flat Major, op. 26
Sonata in E-Flat Major, op. 27 no. 1
Sonata in D Minor, op. 31 no. 2

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN, III
Sonata in E-Flat Major, op. 81a
Sonata in A-Flat Major, op. 110
Sonata in F Minor, op. 57

CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Suite Bergamasque
Etudes, Book I
III. Pour les quartes
IV. Pour les octaves
Etudes, Book II
Pour les arpéges composés
Preludes, Book I

FRANZ SCHUBERT
Sonata in A Minor, D. 537
German Dances D. 783
Sonata in B-Flat Major, D. 960

FRANZ LISZT, II
Schubert/Liszt, Seven Song Transcriptions
Wagner/Liszt, Rienzi Paraphrase
Chopin/Liszt, Six Chants Polonaises
Bellini/Liszt, Reminiscences de Norma

PIANO MUSIC OF THE 20TH CENTURY
Bartok-Six Romanian Folk Dances
Mompou--Paisajes
Shchedrin--Humoresque, A la Albeniz
Ligeti--Two Etudes
Bolcom--The Garden of Eden (1970)
Spooner--Etude-Toccata (1991)

ROBERT SCHUMANN
Arabeske in C Major, op. 18
Papillons op. 2
Romances, op. 28
Humoreske, op. 20

FREDERIC CHOPIN, II
Nocturne in C Minor, op. 48 no. 1
Etude in E Minor, op. 25 no. 5
Etude in G-Sharp Minor, op. 25 no. 6
Etude in C-Sharp Minor, op. 25 no. 7
Etude in D-Flat Major, op. 25 no. 8
Etude in B Minor, op. 25 no. 10
Etude in A Minor, op. 25 no. 11
Scherzo in C-Sharp Minor, op. 39
Nocturne in B Major, op. 62 no. 1
Polonaise in A-Flat Major, op. 53