Composer: Ferencz Liszt
Performer: Daniil Trifonov
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Deutsche Grammophoon
Catalogue: 94795529
Release: 2016
Size: 1.81 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
12 Etudes d’exécution transcendante, S. 139
01. No. 1 Prélude (Presto)
02. No. 2 Molto vivace
03. No. 3 Paysage (Poco adagio)
04. No. 4 Mazeppa (Presto)
05. No. 5 Feux follets (Allegretto)
06. No. 6 Vision (Lento)
07. No. 7 Eroica (Allegro)
08. No. 8 Wilde Jagd (Presto furioso)
09. No. 9 Ricordanza (Andantino)
10. No. 10 Allegro agitato molto
11. No. 11 Harmonies du soir (Andantino)
12. No. 12 Chasse neige (Andante con moto)
2 Études de concert, S. 145
13. No. 1 Waldesrauschen
14. No. 2 Gnomenreigen
3 Études de Concert, S. 144
15. No. 1 in A-Flat Major “Il lamento” (A capriccio – Allegro cantabile)
16. No. 2 in F Minor “La leggierezza” (A capriccio – Quasi allegretto)
17. No. 3 in D-Flat Major “Un sospiro”
Grandes études de Paganini, S. 141
18. No. 1 in G Minor
19. No. 2 in E-Flat Major
20. No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor “La Campanella”
21. No. 4 in E Major
22. No. 5 in E Major
23. No. 6 in A Minor
Daniil Trifonov has been described by The Times as “the finest young pianist of our age”.
After his successful “Rachmaninov Variations” last year, he has now created another statement to define his extraordinary and growing legacy. It is dedicated to the greatest pianist of his own century: Franz Liszt.
The repertoire is Liszt’s Complete Concert Etudes. These Etudes remain amongst the most challenging piano pieces ever composed – and are rarely recorded or performed. This is the first time that the Complete Liszt Etudes have been recorded as a whole for DG. And Daniil Trifonov is one of the few pianists to have recorded them all in one go – in an unbelievable five days.
Beyond his phenomenal technique, Daniil Trifonov is a distinctly Russian artist: an intense, soulful musician in the great Russian tradition whose presentation and repertoire set him apart from all other young piano stars of today.
While Daniil Trifonov has established his reputation as a versatile pianist, demonstrating in his concerts and recordings an aptitude for the music of Frédéric Chopin, Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky, and Sergey Rachmaninov, his talents for virtuosic brilliance and fantastic speed, as well as his deeply reflective character, seem ready-made for Franz Liszt’s Transcendental Etudes, S. 139. This 2016 Deutsche Grammophon release shows Trifonov in his element, executing the most difficult passages with extraordinary flair, while reserving his lyricism and introspection for Liszt’s poetic meditations. For a taste of Trifonov’s brilliance, try track five of disc one, the famous Feux follets, which Trifonov plays with dazzling technique and a light touch. Also included in this double CD are Liszt’s Two Concert Etudes, S. 145, the Three Concert Etudes, S. 144, and the Grandes Études de Paganini, S. 141, which make up the second CD. An example of Liszt’s poetic side can be found in track five of disc two, Un Sospiro, in which sparkling arpeggios are merged with a long-breathed melody, characteristic of Liszt’s passionate Romanticism. For a special treat, try the final track, Paganini Etude No. 6, which is a set of variations on Niccolò Paganini’s most famous Caprice in A minor, which many composers have exploited. These recordings were made in September 2015 at the Siemensvilla in Berlin, and the acoustics of the concert room provide appropriate resonance for Trifonov’s powerful playing, yet his softest notes are clearly audible in these superb recordings.