Eugen d’Albert (1864-1932) was a German pianist and composer, one of Liszt’s foremost pupils, his 1913 recording of the Liszt Sonata is legendary. As a...

Eugen d’Albert (1864-1932) was a German pianist and composer, one of Liszt’s foremost pupils, his 1913 recording of the Liszt Sonata is legendary. As a pianist he was on a par with giants like Busoni and Tausig, as a composer he wrote piano and chamber music, symphonies and 21 operas. His transcriptions of Bach organ work date back to his apprenticeship under Franz Liszt. Like his teacher and idol d’Albert kept meticulously faithful to the score, which make the performance often highly demanding for the (poor) two-handed pianist, who has to master the two hands plus pedal of the original organ writing. Included are famous Preludes and Fugues and Toccatas and Fugues, culminating in a mighty rendering of the colossal Passacaglia in C minor. Italian pianist Emanuele Delucchi has the technique and style to master these transcriptions. He made a name with his recordings for Piano Classics of the insanely difficult Chopin Studies by Godowsky, played on a 1906 Steinway D, of which the Gramophone wrote: “ Its palette of warm colours remained intact but gained a more incisive attack, allowing Delucchi’s voicing and extraordinary digital facility to be heard at its best…Delucchi is in a class of his own”, Jed Distler of Classicstoday.com wrote: “9/9: every inch a viable contender to the reference versions”. Booklet notes by the artist, in English and Italian.