Louise Farrenc's contributions to the keyboard repertoire are a cornerstone of her creative identity. The Air russe varie stands out as one of her most enduring masterpieces, acclaimed by Robert Schumann for it's rigorous counterpoint and refined musicality. The brilliant Souvenir des Huguenots draws it's themes directly from Meyerbeer's hit opera, while the Grandes Variations sur un Theme du Comte Gallenberg is a monumental testament to Farrenc's mastery of the variation form. This is the sixth and final volume in Maria Stratigou's acclaimed survey of Farrenc's complete works for piano.

In his compositions Joachim Raff balanced the traditional lineage of Mendelssohn and Schumann with the progressive elements found in the music of Liszt and Wagner. His fondness for the piano suite gave him a suitable canvas to blend and resolve past with present, as he does in the melodically captivating Suite No. 2 in C major. Similarly, he fuses Baroque influences with hints of Lisztian Romantic bravura in his pianistic masterpiece, the Suite No. 4 in D minor. '[Raff] could ask for no better advocate than pianist Hyelim Kim' (Fanfare on Volume 1 in this series).

Louise Farrenc won the admiration of her contemporaries as one of the most respected pianists, composers and pedagogues in 19th-century Paris. She was acclaimed as a performer of Beethoven's music, and her graceful Melodie in A flat major was included in an 1846 anthology of works by an array of composers inspired by the music of Beethoven. Farrenc's Impromptu in B minor appeared in another publication, Vogt's Musical Album of Autographs, alongside compositions by 62 other musicians including Berlioz, Gounod and Liszt. The Fugues were never published in Farrenc's lifetime and are heard here in a world premiere recording. '[Stratigou] has a full mastery of Farrenc's romantic style and a technique to match' (American Record Guide on Volume 3, GP942).

Louise Farrenc was one of the most respected pianists, composers and pedagogues in the Parisian musical scene of her day, gaining the admiration of Robert Schumann. Her Theme and Variations sets are regarded as some of the most significant pieces she composed for piano. In this volume, Farrenc takes inspiration from the famous bel canto operas of Bellini and Donizetti, as well as popular airs and dances that would have resounded throughout the fashionable salons of 19th-century Paris. Maria Stratigou continues her acclaimed survey of Farrenc's complete works for piano.

Selim Palmgren was one of the most celebrated pianist-composers in the years before the end of the First World War. His vast catalogue of piano music, much of it unknown, is showcased in this acclaimed series performed by Jouni Somero, the Finnish composer's greatest modern exponent. This volume features the virtuosic and demanding Fantasie, Op. 6, one of Palmgren's most compelling works, as well as examples of music irradiated by Impressionism and Nordic folklore. Miniatures including études, waltzes, and pieces that exude Chopinesque charm are also featured.

Viennese composer, conductor, and pianist Wilhelm Grosz was a musician of remarkable versatility and wide-ranging influences. He attracted critical praise as a composer from an early age with the technically formidable Symphonic Variations on an Original Theme, acclaimed as "a dramatic tone painting expanding to symphonic grandeur - on only one instrument." The Kleine Sonate is marked by great depth and clarity of expression, while the waltz transcriptions tapped into a craze for Johann Strauss II in 1930s London. The highly original Three Pieces was rediscovered just before this recording was made.

José Antonio Bottiroli's protégé and greatest champion, Fabio Banegas, presents this fourth volume of his mentor's complete piano works. In this wide-ranging collection we hear works with orchestra and with chamber ensemble, as well as pieces for piano solo and duo. Symphonic Impressions for piano and orchestra offers lyricism and virtuosity, while the remainder of the programme focuses on Bottiroli's contrapuntal mastery, the creative refashioning and expansion of earlier works, and his use of Argentine folk dances such as the chamamé. Together they present musical mementos of his own life experience.

Armande de Polignac was one of an unprecedented number of female composers emerging at the beginning of the 20th century. With training from the likes of Gabriel Fauré and Vincent d'Indy, she was able to devote her life to music at the highest level of professionality. From the introspective early Préludes via the luxuriant, Russian-infused Échappées to the remarkable sonic realism of Cloches, these recordings reveal Armande de Polignac as one of the greatest French female composers of her time.

The admired Schumann authority, Jean-Pierre Armengaud, presents this second volume of Clara Schumann's solo piano music, which focuses on the transcriptions she made of works by her husband, Robert. Clara evokes orchestral density in the overture to Robert Schumann's only opera Genoveva, and also in the complex Bach-inspired Studies for Pedal Piano. Above all, the song transcriptions see her engaged in acts of complex creative union while also revealing the independence of her musical vision. Volume 1 in this series is on GP930.

The music of multi-award-winning composer Vincent Ho has been described by The New York Times as 'brilliant and compelling', not least for his music's beauty and expressive breadth. Ho wrote The Twelve Chinese Zodiac Animals as a gift for his eight-year-old daughter, to enrich her musical education as she learned the piano and to introduce her to Chinese cultural themes and performance practices in pianistic form. The cycle presents the musical spirits of the animals with captivating musical caricatures in two books, the second of which is a selection of preludes and fugues for more advanced players. They are performed by Tony Yike Yang, one of Canada's finest young pianists and the youngest laureate in the history of the International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw.

Joachim Raff was a largely self-taught composer whose style stands somewhere between the German traditionalism of Schumann and the newer school of Wagner. Raff composed seven Suites for Piano, a form he preferred to the sonata, and this provided him with greater freedom as a composer, resulting in his most substantial contribution to the piano literature. This is reflected in the Mendelssohn-like lyricism of the First Suite; contrasts between Baroque and Romantic styles in the Third Suite, a piece admired by Liszt; and more nationalist inclinations in the memorably melodic Fifth Suite.

Nino Rota's iconic score for The Godfather is typical of his neo-Classicism - or 'Classical modernist' language - a cosmopolitan and functional musical style inspired by his teachers Pizzetti and Casella. This second and final volume of Rota's solo piano music ranges from Ippolito gioca, an early piece celebrating Pizzetti's 50th birthday, to a large-scale Variations and Fugue on the name Bach that concludes with a four-part fugue. The psychologically expressive music Rota composed for Federico Fellini's film Il Casanova is also featured, alongside the piece Moliere from his music for the ballet Le Moliere imaginaire.

Award-winning Polish composer, Pawel Lukaszewski, is one of today's most distinctive creators of contemporary sacred music. The Nocturnes for piano, based on some of his own sacred pieces, are inspired by the cosmos, with each nocturne named after a newly discovered bright star in constellations including Vela, Scorpius and the Southern Cross. Lukaszewski takes the listener on a journey through the beauty of the night sky with these intimate and atmospheric sound paintings.

In this volume we discover how composers in England, Scotland, the Netherlands and the Nordic countries responded to the waves of jazz and syncopated dance music that had crossed the Atlantic and captivated European audiences. The album features a wide selection of famous and less well-known composers who each succeed in combining the authentic energising rhythms of foxtrots, tangos and shimmies with their own unique styles. Gottlieb Wallisch's seventh and final volume in this acclaimed series features many unknown gems and world premiere recordings. A digital EP of bonus tracks by Bliss, Schnitzler and Hijman (GP962DR) is also available for download and streaming.

A fundamental characteristic of Manuel Ponce's music is the range of styles and techniques he used throughout his career. The expressive Romanza de amor is a sublime example of his Romantic phase, while his huge contribution to Mexican nationalist music is represented in the folk music that appears in Rapsodia mexicana I and II. Moods of melancholy and nostalgia are evident in the Mazurkas as well as more modernist works such as the Intermezzo (No. 3). This is the fourth volume in alvaro Cendoya's critically acclaimed series of Ponce's complete piano works.

The enduring appeal of opera in the 19th century found a new and intimate expression in the realm of solo piano music. This recording reveals how the grandeur and expressive range of operas by Bellini and Verdi was brought from the theatre into private parlours and salons. The composers featured on this album preserve the spirit of the original works while reimagining the famous melodies and dramatic scenes as paraphrases, fantasies and variations. Awardwinning Italian pianist, Ruben Micieli, performs these dazzling pieces in his own unique way, making musical and structural adjustments to each transcription after studying the scores by Bellini and Verdi.

Vittorio Rieti won esteem for his orchestral music which was conducted by titans such as Toscanini and Stokowski, but the piano remained his greatest musical love. Rieti's vivid freshness can be appreciated in the selections in this volume, which ranges from the choreographed movement of his late works, including the Variazioni enarmoniche - an example of his elegance, humour and command of variational form - to the deliciously descriptive wit of his early works. Giorgio Koukl, whom The Art Music Lounge called 'one of the five or six greatest living pianists today', is once again joined by award-winning pianist, Virginia Rossetti - together they offer 'an object lesson in duo-piano balance' (Fanfare on Volume 2 in this series, GP938).

This album presents a selection of early piano works by six of China's most internationally lauded composers. The pieces explore elements of Chinese and Western traditions though most are rooted in a traditional national style derived from Chinese opera or folk music. They evoke characteristic Chinese instrumental sonorities, especially percussion - gongs, drums, chimes and bells - from a variety of source material including Beijing Opera and ballads. Pianist Kiu Tung Poon has performed internationally and is admired for her 'lively and authoritative' playing (American Record Guide) and for her 'lyrical and emotionally nuanced' interpretations (Woodstock Times).

Positioned between Southern Europe and North Africa, Malta has long been an artistic crucible that forms one of the Mediterranean's most significant cultural crossroads. With it's intense pianistic colours, Charles Camilleri's African Dreams explores that continent's native rhythms and melodic lines, while Carmelo Pace and Carlo Diacono look towards the worlds of Liszt and Chopin. Josie Mallia Pulvirenti's rarely heard Impressione Sinfonica is a concert masterpiece of virtuosic majesty, steeped in the piano's Golden Age. Award-winning Maltese pianist, Charlene Farrugia, has done extensive research into the life and work of composers from her homeland.

Franz Xaver Mozart, who studied with Salieri and Hummel, was a composer-pianist like his father, Wolfgang Amadeus, but inevitably laboured under the weight of huge expectation. This album contains his largest work for solo piano, the Piano Sonata in G major - an assured, distinctive piece that balances dance with drive. His most virtuosic work is the exuberant Fantasy on a Russian Song and a Krakowiak, while his mischievous Variations on a Russian Theme and the variations on his father's Don Giovanni illustrate Franz Xaver's great gifts for elaboration and playfulness. Robert Markham, who has conducted research into the life and music of Franz Xaver Mozart, has been hailed as a performer of 'astonishing lucidity and coherence' by Musical Opinion.

Clara Schumann was one of the most famous of all 19th-century piano virtuosos, admired by contemporaries such as Liszt and Thalberg. Her piano works never succumb to stereotype and the Romances anticipate the sonority of Brahms' late music for piano. Her Variations, Op. 20 entwines Robert Schumann's themes with her own in music of touching intimacy. The Preludes and Fugues reflect Clara's love of Bach. This first volume of her complete music for solo piano is performed by the distinguished French pianist, Jean-Pierre Armengaud, who has written about Robert and Clara Schumann as well as having organised a symposium devoted to them.

Franz Xaver Wolfgang Mozart was the youngest of six children born to Wolfgang Amadeus and his wife Constanze. Franz Xaver's style was early Romantic, with compositions that were highly regarded by his contemporaries Schubert and Schumann. The Polonaise melancolique was an ideal medium for Franz Xaver's expressive melodies, and with some pieces anticipating Chopin, the Op. 17 collection forms a satisfying and substantial cycle. All of these works helped to establish Franz Xaver Mozart throughout Europe as a formidable concert pianist and composer.

This is the first of two volumes dedicated to works featuring violin and piano by Nikolay Tcherepnin and his son Alexander. Pianist Giorgio Koukl and violinist Klaidi Sahatci are joined by cellist Johann Sebastian Paetsch in the Trio Concertante and Piano Trio. All but one of the works in this collection are world premiere recordings including the recently discovered early Violin Sonata in C minor by Alexander Tcherepnin.

Gottlieb Wallisch is a specialist in the music of the 1920s and 1930s as can be heard in Grand Piano's 20th Century Foxtrots series. Here he turns his attention to Wilhelm Grosz, the Viennese composer, pianist, conductor and orchestrator who was a musician of remarkable versatility and wide-ranging influences. All but one of the works in this collection are world premiere recordings.

Jouni Somero's acclaimed survey of Palmgren's complete piano works continues with this eighth volume (of ten) in the series. The album features a diverse range of styles from concert studies to country dances, and all but one of the tracks are world premiere recordings.

This recording is a testament both to Isabel Dobarro's passionate commitment to the music of contemporary women composers and also to her promotion of their highly individual and richly varied perspectives. Featuring works by multi-award-winning composers including Dobrinka Tabakova, Julia Wolfe and Gabriela Ortiz, the music here ranges across continents, cultures and traditions.

Faik Bey Franz Della Sudda was Liszt's pupil from Turkey. Affectionately nicknamed 'Der Pasha' by Liszt, Della Sudda had a growing reputation among the musical press and society's elite for brilliant pianism and lyrically picturesque compositions. Prize-winning Turkish pianist, Zeynep Ucbasaran, performs this programme of all world premiere recordings.

Louise Farrenc's Rondos - heard here in world premiere recordings - were composed within the period of a decade, and are delicious examples of her art: graceful, elegant and expressive. Some of them are based on operatic themes or on songs, while others are simpler and intended for younger performers. Volumes 1 and 2 of this 6 album cycle can be heard on GP912-13 and GP934.

Yiming Zhang continues his exploration of the piano music of Ge Gan-ru - 'China's first avant-garde composer' - in this second volume of the composer's works. This world premiere recording of 12 etudes for Extended Piano, written in close collaboration with pianist Yiming Zhang, explores a variety of prepared piano techniques that are evocative of Chinese instruments. Volume 1 can be heard on GP835.