Palimpsest

Regular price $18.99
Label
Divine Art
Release Date
November 14, 2025
Format
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    Featuring
    • COMPOSER
      Frederic Chopin, Michael Finnissy, Rob Hao, Alison Kay, Franz Schubert
    • PERFORMER
      Rob Hao
    Product Details
    • RELEASE DATE
      November 14, 2025
    • UPC
      809730114021
    • CATALOG NUMBER
      DDX21140
    • LABEL
      Divine Art
    • NUMBER OF DISCS
      1
    • GENRE
    Works
    1. Piano Sonata No. 8 in F-Sharp Minor, D. 571

      Composer: Franz Schubert

      Performer: Rob Hao

    2. Palimpsest 571

      Composer: Rob Hao

      Performer: Rob Hao

    3. Nocturne No. 17 in B Major, Op. 62, No. 1

      Composer: Frédéric Chopin

      Performer: Rob Hao

    4. Nocturne No. 18 in E Major, Op. 62, No. 2

      Composer: Frédéric Chopin

      Performer: Rob Hao

    5. X. Orison II

      Composer: Alison Kay

      Performer: Rob Hao

    6. XI. Lullaby for Isabelle

      Composer: Alison Kay

      Performer: Rob Hao

    7. 4 Impromptus, Op. 142, D. 935: No. 2 in A-Flat Major

      Composer: Franz Schubert

      Performer: Rob Hao

    8. Schubert - Müllerlieder, S565/R249: No. 2. Der Müller und der Bach

      Composer: Franz Liszt

      Performer: Rob Hao

    9. No. 2. Midsummer morn

      Composer: Michael Finnissy

      Performer: Rob Hao

    10. No. 7. My Bonny Boy

      Composer: Michael Finnissy

      Performer: Rob Hao

    11. No. 8. Come beat the drums and sound the fifes

      Composer: Michael Finnissy

      Performer: Rob Hao


Australian pianist Rob Hao makes a striking debut with an album that explores how music from different times and styles can interact and inspire new ideas. At the heart of the recording is the premiere of Palimpsest 571, Hao's original work completing Franz Schubert's unfinished Piano Sonata in F-sharp minor, D. 571. Rather than trying to imitate Schubert's style exactly, Hao embraces the gap between past and present, creating a continuation that respects the mood and mystery of the original fragment while adding a fresh, modern voice. The album also features a set of piano etudes by British composer Alison Kay, whose minimalist and atmospheric pieces invite listeners to experience sound and silence in new ways. Alongside these contemporary works are carefully chosen pieces by Chopin, Schubert, Schubert-Liszt, and Michael Finnissy's challenging English country-tunes. Chopin's final nocturnes showcase his gift for blending long, flowing melodies with delicate harmonies, revealing the emotional depth he reached late in life. Schubert's impromptu and Liszt's piano transcription of Der Muller und der Bach bring vocal storytelling to the piano, highlighting the instrument's expressive power. Finnissy's English country-tunes is a powerful and intense piece that explores English folk traditions with virtuosic energy, moving between moments of lyricism and dramatic intensity. This mix of works demonstrates how composers and performers continue to build on musical traditions, layering new ideas over old, and keeping classical music vibrant and alive. This album offers a rich listening experience that invites reflection on how music evolves -shaped by both history and the creative present.