lewenthal variations concertant transfigured

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Alkan: Grande sonate 'Les quatre âges', Sonatine, Le festin d'Esope

16 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Marc-André Hamelin

Hyperion UK, 1995

One of the best solo piano recordings ever made.
This disc is totally astonishing. One you start listening to it you will not be able to stop. The Grande Sonate is one of the most beautiful, moving, complex pieces of music for solo piano ever written. Hamelin brings it to life like no one else can. If you have never listened to Alkan, this is a fine introduction to some of the greatest (and most forgotten) piano music ever composed. And if ...

Alkan: Piano Works; Ronald Smith

6 reviews
Charles Alkan, Ronald Smith

EMI Classics, 2004

A Great Remastering!
I own the original LP recordings of some of these works and the CD version. In a previous review I remarked how the CD sound quality was not the best, but adequate. This remastering brings back much of the original vitality and great sound quality that was in the LP version but lacking in the CD version. And all at a bargain price too! All Alkan (and Ronald Smith fans),don't hesitate to ...

Alkan: 12 Études, Op. 39

6 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Jack Gibbons

Asv Living Era, 1995

(No title).
Comme Le Vent, Like the wind, is a firey, unrelenting deluge of notes which, if played at Alkan's specified metronome marking, travels at the rate of 160 bars per minute -- 20 densely packed pages in just 4'30," and Gibbons falls unbelievably only 7 seconds short! En Rhythm Molossique and Scherzo Diabolico, both technically wicked compositions, receive commanding and sure-footed performances. The ...

Transfigured Mozart

1 review
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Ignaz Friedman, ...

Hanssler Classics, 2006

Petronel Malan: great pianist and proponent of rarities
Before buying this disc, I had never heard of Petronel Malan. While I was browsing through Alkan CDs, I came across this one and was delighted by its premise: these are all piano transcriptions/variations/fantasies of Mozart. What's more, these are mostly world premiere recordings. Malan went out of her way to find these works. Instead of taking the normal route of Liszt or Busoni, she instead ...

Alkan: Symphony for Solo Piano

7 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Marc-André Hamelin

Hyperion UK, 2001

Another milestone on the highway to Alkan restoration
After shortly leaving the unbeaten track with his previous dazzling Schumann recording, Hamelin is back in repertoire that most of his colleagues shun in order to add recordings nrs 499 or 625 of the dinosaurs of the piano repertoire to the catalogue. Back at Alkan Marc-Andre just emphasizes how frightfully narrow-minded the "stars" are when it comes to lesser known, but certainly not lesser ...

Alkan: Concerto for solo piano; Troisième recueil de chants

4 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Marc-André Hamelin

Hyperion UK, 2007

Hamelin Runs Alkan's Gauntlet... and Wins
Charles-Valentin Alkan probably holds the most uneven status of any composer in music history: Schumann saw him as mediocre and Busoni believed him the greatest piano composer next to Beethoven and Liszt. Today, Alkan is gradually becoming more recognized as a musical genius and important pianist-composer. But his music continues to be ignored by the mainstream and seems only known to ...

Alkan: Sonate de Concert; Grand Duo Concertant; Piano Trio

1 review
Charles-Valentin Alkan

Naxos, 2001

neglected but wonderful
This is some absolutlely wonderful chamber music. Alkan's trio is probably the greatest trio ever composed. He's every bit as inventive here as he is with his piano music.

The Legendary Pianist Raymond Lewenthal plays Alkan & Liszt

3 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Franz Liszt, ...

Elan Records, 2000

Superb Fireworks from a Pioneer of the Alkan Revival
The late Raymond Lewenthal had a lifelong fascination with musical escoterica. His two greatest finds were Adolf von Henselt's superb f minor piano concerto (unfortunately Lewenthal's performance of the work is no longer available. Those interested are referred to Marc-Andre Hamelin's superior recording of it on Hyperion) and the works of Charles-Valentin Alkan. This CD is an excellent ...

Henselt: Piano Concerto, Op. 16; Variations de Concert, Op. 11; Alkan: Concerto da Camera, Op. 10/1; Concerto ...

7 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Adolf Henselt, ...

Hyperion UK, 1994

The minor league on in prime time.
After having had so much fun listening to Piers Lane's performances of the d'Albert, Parry and Stanford piano concertos on two other issues from Hyperion's treasure trove, I decided to pull this member of the family from the shelves for a re-evaluation. Comparing notes with the previous reviewers, I agree with many of the comments made. Let's be honest these are not the best among the lesser ...

Charles-Valentin Alkan: Organ Works, Vol. 2
Charles-Valentin Alkan, George Frederick Handel, ...

Toccata, 2008

Building upon the outstanding success of the first volume of organ works by Charles-Valentin Alkan (TOC 30), Toccata is pleased to announce the release of a second disc dedicated to Alkan. First recording of Pro Organo; first complete recording of 11 Pièces dans le Style Religieux, Op.72. A 44-page booklet,written by Martin MacDonald, contains detailed notes on each work along with background information on the composer and technical details on ...

Esquisses Op 63

3 reviews
Alkan, Martin

Naxos, 2002

amazing variety, spanning the spectrum of human emotions.
I was very pleased with this recording. Although I am certainly not used to listening to pieces of music less than three minutes long (I tend to go for longer, more ambitious works), it is very refreshing to hear miniatures like these being performed by such a pianist as Laurent Martin. The range of moods and colours which Alkan manages to portray here is amazing; from the clumsy footsteps of the ...

Piano Music of Alkan: Hexameron

3 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Frederic Chopin, ...

RCA, 1999

(No title)
This disc was my introduction to Alkan. From Alkan, I've gone to Busoni, Stevenson, Godowsky, Thalberg, and, most recently, Sorabji. Being an Alkan-holic, I now have recordings from such pianists as Hamelin, Smith, Reach, Gibbons, McCallum, Feofanov, Martin, Ponti, Ringeissen, Ogdon, Petri, and Howard. Coming full-circle, this disc is probably the best introduction to Alkan and ...

Charles-Valentin Alkan: Concerto For Solo Piano

10 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Marc-André Hamelin

Music & Arts Program, 2001

One of the best
Hamelin or Alkan fans shouldn't bother reading the rest of this review. This is an essential disk. Buy it. If Hamelin receives any negative criticism at all, it seems to follow a regular formula: his technique is divine, but the interpretation is too rigid, fake, almost inhumane. In nearly every case I simply think the exact opposite. Yes, Hamelin's technique is divine, perhaps the greatest ...

The Composer Pianists

8 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Ferruccio Busoni, ...

Hyperion UK, 1998

Astonishing listening
Hamelin is astonishing in his readings of these works- I especially enjoy the Scriabin, Busoni, Feinberg, and Medtner. His playing delivers subtle dynamics and the pure intensity of an inspired artist. If you truly love to hear the most difficult piano works played the way they were envisioned by their composers, listen to Hamelin.

Charles-Valentin Alkan: Organ Works, Vol. 1

1 review
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Kevin Bowyer

Toccata, 2006

A thrilling experience
This is an absolutely stunning recording of virtuoso organ music, both organ playing and composing. Although Alkan composed it in the mid-1800s, it is not easily dated and cannot be pigeonholed. The whole cd is so fascinating that one can listen to it all the way through without being tired of the "organ sound." In fact each piece has its own very distinct and quirky character, magnificently ...

Alkan: 12 Etudes, Op. 35
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Bernard Ringeissen

Marco Polo, 1994

Alkan: Piano Music, Volume 1: 12 Etudes, Op. 35

3 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Bernard Ringeissen

Naxos, 2001

Amen - great pieces
Tacky (the guy below me) said just about everything there is to say about this CD but I would like to add one other thing. As well as #7, etudes #10 and #11 are two of the greatest Romantic-era pieces I have ever heard. #10 will leave you stunned, I guarantee it. The ending might disappoint on first hearing, but once the meaning becomes clear, it is as powerful as any. Listen a second and a third ...

Charles-Valentin Alkan
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Nicholas King

Symposium, 2000

Alkan: The Railway and other Piano Works

3 reviews
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Bernard Ringeissen, ...

Naxos, 1995

Charles Valentin Alkan: "The Berlioz of piano"
The weird creative universe of Alkan, his well marked introspection as well as his febrile activity in which concerns the expressive possibilities of the piano, surrounded him of a sort of mysterious halo. His introspectiveness exerted on the audiences, caution, veiled admiration and a certain misgiving. His lyricism was not precisely direct. He faded into oblivion until the second half of ...

Alkan: Studies for piano, op. 35

1 review
Charles-Valentin Alkan, Stephanie McCallum

Tall Poppies, 1995

Serving the name of Smith well!
Stephanie McCallum studied with Ronald Smith (the grandfather of the Alkan movement) and has come out with her own Alkan cycle. Her playing of the op.35 (the "first volume" of the Alkan etudes) is absolutly astonishing! She handles the barage of notes with outstanding technique. These etudes are not often heard, save the 5th. Even amoung all those that have record this particular etude (Smith, ...

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