• These sonatas of Giuseppe Tartini (1692–1770), form the most important composition for solo violin after Bach.
• At six hours in duration, it is the largest integrated work for the instrument.
• Peter Sheppard Skærved's discography stretches from Telemann to many of the works written for him. He is the leader of the Kreutzer Quartet and Viotti Lecturer at the Royal Academy of Music, London.
• ‘(an) opportunity to hear all of the sonatas. Recommended.’ Robert Maxham, Fanfare

The four works on this first CD of Komarnitsky’s music are all that remains of his copious output of chamber music. Featuring the London Piano Trio, they “audibly believe in every note, and their dedicated performances are set within a bold sound frame […]” (Gramophone Classical Music Guide).

REVIEW:

I was bowled over by the music on this record and sincerely hope that there is more to be discovered of this composer’s works, perhaps lying in some archives somewhere which is often where such things end up. It is tantalising to have heard this music and not to be sure of being able to explore further examples of it. I wait with bated breath and great hopes that more from him will emerge.

The members of the London Piano Trio play all of this music with passion, commitment and great skill making me want to seek out music where they play as a trio. Robert Atchison’s notes are a useful commentary on the background to the pieces.

-- MusicWeb International

"Bavouzet’s Haydn is unmatched in its zest and its wit. But it is also substantial, informed and deeply rewarding."

--The New York Times on Bavouzet's Haydn Sonatas cycle, 2022

This is Volume 4 in Jean-Efflam Bavouzet’s project to record the complete piano sonatas of Haydn. The last volume in the series was a Critic’s Choice in Gramophone, an Instrumental Choice in BBC Music, Editor’s Choice in Classic FM, and Recording of the Month in MusicWeb International.

In the words of Bavouzet himself: ‘Each volume of this ambitious, extended project will arrive over the years like a postcard, dispatched during my travels with scant respect for chronological considerations, but undertaken with the greatest passion for trying to convey as vividly as possible to twenty-first-century ears the boundless treasures of this sublime music.’

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet received a BBC Music Award in 2012 and a Gramophone Award in 2011 for his recording of works by Debussy and Ravel (with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Yan Pascal Tortelier). His recording of Bartók’s Concertos (with Gianandrea Noseda and the BBC Philharmonic) was short-listed for a Gramophone Award, and he has won multiple awards for his recording of the complete works for solo piano by Debussy.

REVIEWS

Bavouzet doesn’t disappoint. He leans towards passion...but melancholy also surfaces through rubato, embellished repeats, control of line, pace and dynamics. This is a performance of stature with not a trace of the slick superficiality that mars matters elsewhere.

--Gramophone

These are marvelous works: every one of them has something inspired to capture your attention. In Sonata No. 38, that would have to be the central Adagio, one of those touchstone classical melodies that seem to sum up all that was most beautiful in 18th century music. Sonata No. 40 has only two movements, an intricate opening Moderato and a charming concluding Minuet.

Like No. 38, Sonata No. 30 is a substantial work in three movements[.] Bavouzet’s aptly spiky articulation of the main theme reminds us that Haydn’s early sonatas were likely composed with the harpsichord in mind, but they lose nothing (and gain much) from being played on a modern piano. This program also includes the moody Variations in F minor. Bavouzet’s interpretation is aptly pre-romantic...Haydn’s original, shorter cadenza/coda, without that astonishing tragic eruption that vaults the music forward into the 19th century...Haydn lovers are in keyboard heaven.

--ClassicsToday.com (David Hurwitz)

British pianist Imogen Cooper has studied with some of the finest in the piano world, including with Kathleen Long in London, with Jacques Fevrier and Yvonne Lefebure in Paris, and with Alfred Brendel, Jorg Demus and Paul Badura-Skoda in Vienna. She is widely recognized for her interpretations of Schubert and Schumann. This release follows her three very successful recordings of Schumann. For this album, Cooper has chosen some of the greatest works of Chopin. The album programme makes up an outstanding recital. Coopers virtuosity and emotional wisdom creates a new lense through which to view this frequently performed repertoire. Following this release, Imogen Cooper will embark on a world tour, performing recitals that will include the repertoire included here, and visiting several of Europe’s most prestigious venues before venturing to other continents.

Adolfo Fumagalli (1828–56), one of four musician brothers from Inzago, near Milan, made a name for himself across Europe as ‘the Paganini of the piano’, astonishing audiences with dazzling technique and acquiring a reputation for performances using his left hand alone. Fumagalli composed a large body of piano music – over 100 opus numbers – many being operatic fantasies and virtuosic studies of the type presented in this anniversary recital given in his home town. The CD also features several virtuoso studies from the set of 24 in Fumagalli’s École du pianiste modern, published in Paris in 1854.

Ronald Center (1913–73) is sometimes described as ‘the Scottish Bartók’. His music shows affinities with the music of Busoni, Debussy, Prokofiev, Shostakovich and Vaughan Williams.
The Scottish pianist Christopher Guild is a strong advocate of contemporary and lesser-known repertoire. Christopher’s investigation into the piano music of his homeland will continue with works by Ronald Stevenson, also for Toccata Classics. The youngest-ever winner of the Moray Piano Competition to this day.

REVIEW:

Gathered here are Center’s 13-minute Piano Sonata, 15-minute set of Six Bagatelles, and 9-minute Piano Sonatine, along with nine shorter pieces. Most are first recordings, though the Sonata has been released on both LP and CD three or four times before. One can see why: it’s a strong, well-made showpiece with cascading, propulsive allegros surrounding two idiosyncratic slow movements, the first an atmospheric nocturne that builds a long, gravel-treading melodic line into a climactic restatement introduced by a halo of arpeggios, the second a quiet, involute canon that becomes encrusted with vehement, fastsnapping ornaments before spinning up into a boldly vaulting fugue to bring this initially introverted andante to a stirring conclusion. There’s not a wasted note in this sonata, and though concise it feels “big” both in sound and scale, encompassing considerable substance and variety.

Of the shorter works some are lively trifles, though even these display Center’s penchant for tangy bitonal harmonies. Many of the slower numbers are wistful and some quite beautiful. ‘Columbine’, from the 5-minute triptych Pantomine, and ‘Larghetto’, a 3-minute singleton, are lovely miniature dream-visions. This is one of those collections where each time one listens to it, one finds more to like. And with 28 tracks, there’s a lot to like here.

-- American Record Guide

Mozart wrote only one actual sonata for two pianos. Mozart By Arrangement is the first instalment of six sparkling new Mozart two-piano sonatas. Violinist and conductor Andrew Manze once observed that the frequent concerto-like writing in Mozart's op. 2 (1781) sonatas for violin and piano might make them effective piano duets. The Australian composer Stephen Yates has taken him up on the idea, adding these delightful new works to the two-piano repertoire.

REVIEW:

These transcriptions by British composer Stephen Yates were inspired by none other than one of the world’s foremost interpreters of the original works, violinist Andrew Manze, who suggested that the violin music could effectively be reimagined as piano music. I was dubious of the concept in practice, owing to my supreme respect—wonderment, really—of Mozart’s intuitive sense of instrumental timbre and dramatic intent. Clearly, Manze has better intuition on this matter than do I (no surprise!), because this is a completely charming production. Here is yet another enchanting and novel release from Toccata Classics, an indispensable label for all true piano lovers.

-- Fanfare