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Piano Recital 1986 - Franz Liszt / André Watts
SWR

Piano Recital 1986 - Franz Liszt / André Watts

$13.99

Details

Composer
LISZT, FRANZ
Artist
André Watts
Format
CD
Label
SWR
Released
Apr 24, 2012
Catalog #
93718
UPC
4010276025153

About

LISZT Piano Sonata. Hungarian Rhapsody No. 13. Valse oubliée No. 1. 6 Paganini Etudes. Au lac de Wallenstadt. Il penseroso • André Watts (pn) • HÄNSSLER CD 93.718 (77:08) Live: Schwetzingen 5/25/1986

This is a live concert, but the sound is on par with just about any studio recording, and there is no applause, or any other distraction, from the audience. Liszt has figured prominently in André Watts’s repertory, both on disc and in concert, and there is nothing in this recital that you won’t find on one of the two Liszt CDs that he recorded for EMI not long before. There are the expected benefits and hazards. Watts has an occasional moment of slightly (very slightly!) less than flawless fingerwork—which is not something one would expect on a disc recorded in a studio, of course. On the other hand, Watts is more spontaneous here than on the EMI discs, which present his pianism purring and powerful like the engine of a racing car. There is purring and power here too, but also a touch of the unexpected, and that makes this new release worth exploring, especially if you don’t want to invest in the pair of EMI releases. (They were reissued at a bargain price in the label’s Double Fforte series, but that two-CD set is no longer in print.)

I think it’s been a while since Watts released a new CD, and it is good to be reminded what a terrific pianist he was … and I hope still is. (He is still a few years from his 70th birthday, and holds a faculty position at Indiana University in Bloomington.) His Liszt Totentanz is one of the most electrifying piano recordings ever made, and it reveals him—as does the present release—as having supreme digital dexterity and a flair for old-school virtuosity. At the same time, he never has been an effect-mongering showoff, and the performances on this CD confirm that intelligence and good taste are part of his skill set as well. I’ve heard more cohesive readings of the Sonata in B Minor, it’s true, but the music certainly does not fall apart, and Watts always keeps the big picture in focus. Some might be surprised by his strong flair for the Magyar elements in the Hungarian Rhapsody; they should remember that Watts’s mother was Hungarian.

If you don’t have any of Watts’s Liszt, I’d recommend this highly. If you do, I’d still recommend it, although I don’t think it eclipses the studio recordings.

FANFARE: Raymond Tuttle

Tracklist 11 tracks

  1. 1 Annees de pelerinage, 1st year, Switzerland, S160/R10: No. 2. Au lac de Wallenstadt (At the Lake of Wallenstadt) 08:34
    Track
    1
    Title
    Annees de pelerinage, 1st year, Switzerland, S160/R10: No. 2. Au lac de Wallenstadt (At the Lake of Wallenstadt)
    Duration
    08:34
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  2. 2 Annees de pelerinage, 2nd year, Italy, S161/R10b: No. 2. Il penseroso (The Thinker) 04:26
    Track
    2
    Title
    Annees de pelerinage, 2nd year, Italy, S161/R10b: No. 2. Il penseroso (The Thinker)
    Duration
    04:26
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  3. 3 Piano Sonata in B Minor, S178/R21 31:33
    Track
    3
    Title
    Piano Sonata in B Minor, S178/R21
    Duration
    31:33
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  4. 4 19 Hungarian Rhapsodies, S244/R106: No. 13 in A Minor 08:18
    Track
    4
    Title
    19 Hungarian Rhapsodies, S244/R106: No. 13 in A Minor
    Duration
    08:18
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  5. 5 4 Valses oubliees, S215/R37: Valse oubliee No. 1 03:24
    Track
    5
    Title
    4 Valses oubliees, S215/R37: Valse oubliee No. 1
    Duration
    03:24
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  6. 6 No. 1 in G Minor 04:30
    Track
    6
    Title
    No. 1 in G Minor
    Duration
    04:30
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  7. 7 No. 2 in E-Flat Major 05:43
    Track
    7
    Title
    No. 2 in E-Flat Major
    Duration
    05:43
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  8. 8 No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor, "La campanella" 04:21
    Track
    8
    Title
    No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor, "La campanella"
    Duration
    04:21
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  9. 9 No. 4 in E Major 01:56
    Track
    9
    Title
    No. 4 in E Major
    Duration
    01:56
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  10. 10 No. 5 in E Major 03:01
    Track
    10
    Title
    No. 5 in E Major
    Duration
    03:01
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts
  11. 11 No. 6 in A Minor 05:48
    Track
    11
    Title
    No. 6 in A Minor
    Duration
    05:48
    Composer
    Franz Liszt
    Performer
    André Watts