Liszt

This is pianist Nelson Goerner’s twelfth recording for the Alpha Classics label. He devotes his new album to the solo piano works of Franz Liszt, with the famous Sonata in B minor as the centrepiece; nearly twenty years after his first CD of the sonata, he felt the urge to re-record it, following a series of critically acclaimed concerts. His talents as a storyteller and as a virtuoso with an eye for nuance are heard to marvellous effect in this monumental work, a veritable ‘musical action’ that undoubtedly belongs in the pantheon of the finest literature for piano. The programme is completed by excerpts from Liszt’s major cycles, including the Petrarch Sonnets from the Années de pèlerinage and the Hungarian Rhapsody no.6, along with the spectacular concert étude La leggierezza.

The pre-eminent Lisztian of our day returns to Brilliant Classics for a symphonic sequel of transcriptions. In 2018, Brilliant Classics issued Leslie Howard and Mattia Ometta playing the 12 symphonic poems of Liszt in the composer's own transcriptions for piano duo (95748). The set won glowing reviews: 'Not only do Leslie Howard and Mattia Ometto navigate Liszt's technical challenges with fluency and ease,' wrote Jed Distler for Classics Today, 'but they also treat the scores seriously… Howard's excellent annotations and Brilliant Classics' budget price further clinch my recommendation for collectors.' As before, Leslie Howard supplies his own, invaluable insights to accompany this trio of symphonies in Liszt's transcriptions for piano duo. As with the symphonic poems,

This album reveals the multiple facets of love according to Liszt - carnal, spiritual and divine all at once - from the prophetic masterpieces of his youth to the vast canvases of maturity. Bénédiction de Dieu dans la solitude and the Sonata in B minor mark his crowning achievement, anticipating the piano music of the modern era. Tanguy de Williencourt displays all the ardour and faith these remarkable works call for.

Anneleen Lenarts shines new light on the two featured composers with her compellingly idiomatic arrangements and spontaneous musical communication which goes from her nimble fingers (and feet!) straight through to the listener’s heart…

To celebrate the 200th anniversary of Franz Liszt's birth, virtuoso pianist Lang Lang has selected some of the composer's most characteristic pieces for his 2011 Sony release, Liszt: My Piano Hero…