Franz Liszt (1811-1886), though primarily known for his groundbreaking work as a pianist and composer, had an indirect but meaningful relationship with the harp. While he did not compose extensively for the instrument, he recognized it's expressive capabilities and occasionally incorporated it into his orchestral and vocal works. His appreciation for the harp's unique timbre is especially evident in pieces like the Dante Symphony and Les Preludes, where the harp adds a celestial or ethereal texture that complements his dramatic musical narratives. Liszt's circle of influence also brought him into contact with harpists of his time, and he occasionally arranged pieces that could be adapted for the harp. His transcription of Schubert's Ave Maria, for instance, has become a popular work among harpists. Though he never wrote solo harp compositions, the lyrical and arpeggiated nature of his piano writing shares similarities with harp technique, suggesting an understanding of the instrument's expressive qualities. This beautiful program presents arrangements of works by Liszt which are especially suitable for performance on the harp: Ave Maria, Schubert's Standchen, 6 Consolations, 3 Liebestraume, Angelus. The harp arrangements are by several famous harp players and composers from the end of the 19th century. Beautifully played by Anna Pasetti, one of the leading harp players of today. As a musicologist, she is the author of about 300 publications on the history of the harp and it's repertoire (including 5 monographs), but she also has numerous recordings to her credit, mostly dedicated to the unknown harp repertoire that she herself rediscovered.

Marches and other patriotic music frequently occupied the final place in Liszt's recitals, often emphasising the Hungarian cause, which Liszt supported. They also could have contributed to the previously mentioned mood of Lisztomania. It is therefore unsurprising that marches are to be found in Liszt's compositions and arrangements throughout his lifetime. They are represented here with works from around 1830 to 1879, all arrangements of other composers' music, which, in Liszt's hands, achieve artistic heights only found infrequently elsewhere. Given the common practice of the era for performer-composers to play their own music, Liszt could, through the inclusion of an arrangement of a well-known march, acknowledge others' music, and also pay respect to the culture of wherever the concert was taking place. In an era when recordings were not possible, piano arrangements of orchestral and vocal works were commonplace. Liszt cultivated this medium particularly successfully, creating arrangements of, for example, Beethoven symphonies and paraphrases of stage works by Russian composers such as Glinka. Arrangements heard here of marches by Beethoven, Giuseppe Donizetti, Glinka, Massenet, Meyerbeer, Rossini, Schubert and Szechenyi, indicate the breadth of Liszt's programming for his time.

Ilya Shmukler was the winner of the prestigios Geza Anda Competition in Zurich in 2024. On this album he presents a broad variety of composers and musical styles.

With this LP IBA is beginning to release a new series of live concert recordings from the immense sound/video archive of Idil Biret from the 1950s to 2020. On the first LP Schumann's Fantasie Op. 17 from the New York concert at Alice Tully Hall in 1972 and Liszt's Sonata in B minor from the Paris concert at Salle Gaveau in 1978 are included. Two performances of these works were significant milestones in Biret's concert career, opening up to her the stages of the Soviet Union and East Germany.

Rome 1839, Palazzo Poli: one of Liszt's Roman concerts has gained significance in the history of music. A prominent audience of high ecclesiastical and secular dignitaries listened to Liszt's performances. Strangely enough, it was at this concert that Liszt took the risk of introducing a new type of program, as he decided for the first time to dispense with the participation of other artists and to conduct the evening entirely on his own. This was the first "solo piano recital" or, as Liszt jokingly put it: "The first of my boring musical monologues, which I now want to give everywhere in future. Le Concert c'est moi!" This album by Kateryna Titova presents live recordings as well as recordings made as part of an eponymous exhibition at the museum at Liszt's birthplace Raiding, featuring, among others, the so-called Dante Sonata, Liebestraume Nos. 2 & 3, two Paganini etudes as well as the first Mephisto Waltz.

AN EVENING WITH LISZT

V3: COMPLETE PIANO MUSIC

V14: COMPLETE PIANO MUSIC

BARENBOIM PLAYS/CONDUCTS LISZT

PIANO WORKS (VINYL)

The piano Duo FourTe - Eva-Maria Weinreich and Tomohito Nakaishi - presents it's debut album with GENUIN, unveiling a fresh perspective on Franz Liszt's symphonic poems, rendered with the monumental resonance of two concert grand pianos. Liszt himself transcribed his groundbreaking orchestral works for piano - both for two pianos and for four hands. Drawing from all three versions, the internationally acclaimed German-Japanese Duo FourTe has crafted a richly textured and colorful arrangement for two pianos, bringing Liszt's orchestral splendor and opulent sound world as close to the original as possible - a symphonic flight across 176 keys!

Benjamin Grosvenor - "Liszt" Hot on the heels of his 2020 Diapason d'Or and Gramophone Award triumphs, British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor presents his next album with Decca Classics. The album, Liszt, signifies Grosvenor's most substantial solo recording to date, centered around the works of the Romantic piano virtuoso and composer, Franz Liszt. The release marks Benjamin's sixth album on Decca Classics, following the award-winning Chopin Piano Concertos in 2020.

ANNEES DE PELERINAGE TROISIEME

New Liszt Discoveries, Vol. 2

V4: NEW DISCOVERIES