2CDs
The complete European Recordings 1911-12
COMPACT DISC 1
CHOPIN Waltz in A flat Op 34 No 1; CHOPIN Nocturne in F sharp Op 15 No 2; CHOPIN Waltz in C sharp minor Op 64 No 2; STOJOWSKI Chant d’amour Op 26 No 3; SCHUBERT–LISZT Hark! Hark! The Lark!; SCHUMANN Nachtstück in F Op 23 No 4; CHOPIN Polonaise in A Op 40 No 1; CHOPIN Nocturne in E Op 62 No 2; CHOPIN Etude in G flat Op 25 No 9; CHOPIN Etude in F Op 25 No 3;
CHOPIN Mazurka in A minor Op 17 No 4; CHOPIN Nocturne in F Op 15 No 1; PADEREWSKI Minuet in G Op 14 No 1; PADEREWSKI Nocturne in B flat Op 16 No 4; MENDELSSOHN Songs Without Words Op 53 No 4 & Op 19 No 3; DEBUSSY Reflets dans l’eau; PAGANINI–LISZT La Campanella; PADEREWSKI Cracovienne fantastique Op 14 No 6; CHOPIN Nocturne in F sharp Op 15 No 2
COMPACT DISC 2
CHOPIN Etude in C minor Op 10 No 12; Etude in C Op 10 No 7; Etude in A flat Op 25 No 1; Etude in F minor Op 25 No 2; Etude in E Op 10 No 3; PADEREWSKI Cracovienne fantastique Op 14 No 6; SCHUBERT–LISZT Hark! Hark! The Lark!; SCHUMANN Des Abends Op 12 No 1; Aufschwung Op 12 No 2; Warum? Op 12 No 3; CHOPIN Waltz in A flat Op 34 No 1; CHOPIN Mazurka in A minor Op 17 No 4; CHOPIN–LISZT The Maiden’s Wish; CHOPIN Etude in C sharp minor Op 25 No 7; PAGANINI–LISZT La Campanella; STOJOWSKI Chant d’amour Op 26 No 3; LISZT Etude de concert No 2 in F minor; CHOPIN–LISZT The Maiden’s Wish; CHOPIN Berceuse in D flat Op 57; MENDELSSOHN Song Without Words Op 19 No 3; RUBINSTEIN Valse-Caprice in E flat
Paderewski was perhaps the most famous, and certainly the most highly paid, pianist who ever lived. In the years between 1890 and the First World War his fame reached levels now only reserved for the biggest pop stars and when he became prime-minister of Poland after the end of the war his deification was complete. He resumed his career in the 1920s and continued to perform until his death. Unfortunately most of his recordings were made later in life and do not capture his playing in its prime, a fact which has somewhat damaged his posthumous reputation, so it is particularly important that these earliest recordings, which can redress the balance, are made available complete for the first time. This is playing very different in style from that which we are used to today, but aside from its historic importance, taken on its own terms it is quite clear what a great communicator Padereswki was. And it's good to be reminded in works like Liszt's La Leggierezza study that at this point in his career there was nothing lacking in technique either.
Several titles included are taken from Paderewski's own test pressings of unissued discs held at the International Piano Archive, University of Maryland, and this is their first release. A must for collectors!