Anderszewski Piano

Mullova and Anderszewski have thought through every detail of their interpretations - these are performances of exceptionally wide expressive range, from passionate ardor to the dark and turgid to the touchingly melancholic. Mullova and Anderszewski give a wonderful impression of having thought through every detail of their interpretations. Throughout the three sonatas I was impressed, not just by the way they do everything Brahms asks for, but by their evident personal involvement in the music.

Since his first release for Virgin Classics, Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations in 2000, Polish pianist Piotr Anderszewski’s has produced a catalogue which ranges from Bach and Mozart, through more Beethoven to Chopin, Szymanowski and Webern, and which includes several prizewinning recordings.

The collection gathers the best relaxing tunes from the piano repertoire performed by most eminent musicians: Piotr Anderszewski, Leif Ove Andsnes, Daniel Barenboim, Bertrand Chamayou, Aldo Ciccolini, Samson François, Hélène Grimaud, Stephen Kovacevich, Nicolai Lugansky, Maria-João Pires, Maurizio Pollini, Anne Queffélec, Alexandre Tharaud and Alexis Weissenberg.

Piotr Anderszewski juxtaposes solo piano works by three composers who asserted and shaped the musical identity of their Central European countries in the earlier 20th century: Janáček in Moravia (which in 1918 became part of Czechoslovakia), Szymanowski in Poland, and Bartók in Hungary.

Piotr Anderszewski juxtaposes solo piano works by three composers who asserted and shaped the musical identity of their Central European countries in the earlier 20th century: Janáček in Moravia (which in 1918 became part of Czechoslovakia), Szymanowski in Poland, and Bartók in Hungary.

This pairing of concertos Nos 25 and 27, recorded with Chamber Orchestra of Europe, is Piotr Anderszewski’s third Warner Classics album of Mozart concertos. “In Mozart I tend to prefer to direct from the keyboard,” he explains, “His concertos are like chamber works … The piano is in dialogue with the orchestra, conversing and interacting all the time. The two works are very different… No 25 is very grand, complex and sophisticated; No 27, Mozart’s final piano concerto, is in a major key, but underneath it I sense an incredible sadness… It always amazes me how deep this music is.”

It tends to be Russian performers who capture the dark, emotional undercurrents of Shostakovich's music, but few chamber groups have ever done it as well as the Belcea Quartet, a London-based group of central and eastern European players. Neither the Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 57, nor the String Quartet No. 3 in F major, Op. 73, is a commonly played work, but taken together, in the Belcea's more-than-capable hands, they have a powerful impact.