- Mozart: Sonata for 2 pianos KV 521
- Debussy: Nuages; Fêtes for 2 pianos
- Milhaud: Scaramouche
- Lutoslawski: Paganini-variations for 2 pianos
- Mozart: Sonata for 2 pianos KV 448 (3rd mvt)

Martha Argerich -piano
Evgeny Kissin - piano

Live 2001, July 26. Salle Médran, Verbier.

Verbier is 1500m above sea level and is in the Vol de Bages not far from the Matterhorn and Mont Blanc in south-central Switzerland which seems a strange place to hold a musical festival. But the Verbier festival is now in its second decade and attracts an astonishing array of many of the world’s most famous musicians who play together, have fun, run master-classes and help teach a new generation of musicians. This DVD records the 10th anniversary celebration on July 22, 2003. As this coincided with the 150th anniversary of Steinway and Sons, they provided eight of their grand pianos as part of the celebration.

Possibly never before have so many famous musicians collaborated in one concert as the above list of artists illustrates. Even this list does not tell the full story as the “Birthday Festival Orchestra” includes such famous musicians as Kremer, Repin, Tetzlaff and others. The concert started with Argerich and Kissin playing the Mozart Sonata for Two Pianos, a mature Mozart piece of considerable beauty. Smetana’s Sonata in one movement for two pianos and eight hands is a rarity, which is really interesting, tuneful and at times complex; it sounds quite percussive and modern in places. Extracts of the Happy Birthday Variations by Heidrich follow; this comprised variations in the style of Haydn, Beethoven, a Tango and Czardas and was played with style by the orchestra.

The Bach concerto for four pianos is another fascinating rarity – contrapuntal and very complex at times but with a haunting slow movement and a rousing finale.

The rest of the concert is a grand bash with eight pianists playing eight excellent pianos. With such forces, playing together at all is almost impossible, but with pianists of this calibre the result is amazingly good - providing that you don’t expect subtlety and exact precision. The artists seem to be enjoying themselves and it is really good fun. As you would perhaps expect the Gottschalk “Union” arrangement was probably the most suitable for this treatment. The Rossini is quite a subtle piece and showed the strain of the octet treatment the most. All most enjoyable – and finally Barbara Hendricks joined to conclude the Concert with Happy Birthday.

Throughout the musicians were clearly enjoying themselves as was the audience and the atmosphere is caught very well on this DVD. -- Arthur Baker, MusicWeb International

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Prokofiev – Symphony No. 1 in D major (‘Classical’), Op. 25
  1. I. Allegro
  2. II. Larghetto
  3. III. Gavotte: Non Troppo Allegro
  4. IV. Finale: Molto Vivace
Tchaikovsky – Nutcracker, suite from the ballet, Op. 71a
  5. I. Ouverture Miniature
  6. II. Danses Caracteristiques:A. Marche: Tempo Di Marcia Viva
  7. II. Danses Caracteristiques:B. Danse De La Fee Dragee: Andante Non Troppo
  8. II. Danses Caracteristiques:C. Danse Russe - Trepak: Tempo Di Trepak, Molto Vivace
  9. II. Danses Caracteristiques:D. Danse Arabe: Allegretto
  10. II. Danses Caracteristiques:E. Danse Chinoise: Allegro Moderato
  11. II. Danses Caracteristiques:F. Danse Des Mirlitons: Moderato Assai
  12. III. Valse Des Fleurs
Shostakovich – Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor, Op. 67
  13. I. Andante - Moderato
  14. II. Allegro Non Troppo
  15. III. Largo
  16. IV. Allegretto

Martha Argerich - Piano
Yefim Bronfman – Piano (1-4)
Mirabela Dina – Piano (5-12)
Maxim Vengerov – Violin (13-16)
Gautier Capuçon – Cello (13-16)

This bargain 3-CD set is called "Martha Argerich and Friends," but is that enough to warn buyers that she apears only half the time? That half is the best part of this colleciton, taped live across three summers, 2002-04 in Lugano, Switz. The half without Ms. Argerich features other stellar musicians, particularly Maxim Vengerov and Yefim Bronfman, but theyir participation is surprisingly low-key.

Argerich loves to play two-piano music, a genre I find too bangy to be interesting much of the time. She zips through a piano transcription of Prokofive's Sym. 1 with Yefim Brongman, and sparkles in a similar arrangement of the Nutcracker Suite with a parnter unknown to me, Mirabela Dina. I'm sure a lot of listeners will have as much fun with fluff as she does.

Her two major contributions come in a riveting Shostakovich Pianto Trio #2, one of his undoubted masterpieces, with Vengerov almost dominatig the ensemble in his mesmerizing account of the violin part. This reading isn't as fiery as Argerich is wont to be, but it has passion enough ot stand beside the best performances (the composer's own and the one with Richter and the Borodin Trio). The second-best thing here is the Schumann Piano Quintet, again finding Argerich in vigorous but not slashing mode (Gott sei dank), easily taking charge and making this a quintet for piano solo with string obligatto. A fine account despite the imbalance.

The half without Argerich is pleasantly done. I had hoped for much more form Vengerov and Bronfman in the Brahms Violin Sonata #3--maybe the warm July breeze off the lake made them a bit drowsy. A Schubert Piano Trio #1 again finds Bronfman in too relaxed mode; the piece lacks spine and attack. The rest of these three CDs is filled out with Argerich accompanying Geza Hosszu-Lagocky (a fine violinist unknown to me) in Schumann's late, rather debilitated Violin Sonata #1, a lovely account without quirks, and a pleasant but hardly memorable Dvorak Piano Quartet #2 led by Walter Delaunt.

All in all, a bargains et of very good performanes that sometimes rises higher than that. --- Santa Fe Listener, amazon.com

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Johannes Brahms: Violin Sonata No. 3 in D Minor, Op.108
1. I. Allegro
2. II. Adagio
3. III. Un poco presto e con sentimento
4. IV. Presto agitato

Franz Schubert: Trio for Piano, Violin & Cello No.1 in Bb Major, D.898
5. Allegro moderato
6. Andante un poco mosso
7. Scherzo. Allegro
8. Rondo. Allegro vivace

Lylia Zilberstein – Piano (1-4)
Maxim Vengerov – Violin (1-4)
Yefim Bronfman – Piano (5-8)
Renaud Capuçon – Violin (5-8)
Gautier Capuçon – Cello (5-8)

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1: Six Preludes Op. 28 Nos. 19-24
2: Etude in C major Op. 10 No 1

Live recording, Stage I, February 22, 1965

3: Etude in A flat major op. 10 No 10
4: Nocturne in E flat major op. 55 No 2

Live recording, Stage III, March 10, 1965

5: Barcarolle in F sharp major Op. 60
6: Scherzo No 3 in C sharp minor Op. 39

Live recording, Stage II, March 5, 1965

7: Polonaise in A flat major Op. 53

Live recording, Stage I, February 22, 1965

Martha Argerich – 1st Prize winner, 7th International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw (1965).

Born in Buenos Aires (Argentina), Martha Argerich began learning piano at the age of five with Vincenzo Scaramuzza. A child prodigy, she soon was giving public performances, before moving to Europe in 1955 to continue her education in London, Vienna and Switzerland, with Friedrich Gulda, Nikita Magaloff, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli and Stefan Askenase.

In 1957, she won the piano competitions in Bolzano and Geneva, and in 1965 the Chopin Competition in Warsaw. Ever since, she has been regarded as one of the world’s finest pianists. Her broad repertoire notably includes works by Bach, Bartók, Beethoven, Messiaen, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt, Debussy, Ravel, Franck, Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Shostakovich and Tchaikovsky. Argerich works continually with the most outstanding orchestras, conductors and festivals in the world. Chamber music also plays an important part in her artistic activities. She regularly performs and records with pianists Nelson Freire and Alexandre Rabinovitch, cellist Mischa Maisky and violinist Gidon Kremer.

She has made numerous recordings for EMI, Sony, Philips, Teldec and Deutsche Grammophon, winning three Grammies for the concertos of Beethoven (with Claudio Abbado, 2006), Bartók and Prokofiev, and Prokofiev’s Cinderella for two pianos (with Mikhail Pletnev, 2005), Gramophone Artist of the Year, Choc du Monde de la Musique, Sunday Times Record of the Year and BBC Music Magazine Award for her Shostakovich album on EMI (2007), among others.

Since 1998, she has been Artistic Director of the Beppu Festival, Japan. In 1999, she created the International Piano Competition and the Martha Argerich Festival in Buenos Aires, followed by the Progetto Martha Argerich in Lugano, in 2002.

Her many awards and distinctions include Officer (1996) and Commander (2004) of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, the Accademia di Santa Cecilia Award (1997), the Order of the Rising Sun with Gold Rays and Rosette from the Emperor of Japan and the prestigious Praemium Imperiale of the Japanese Arts Association (2005).

She previously performed in the ‘Chopin and his Europe’ festival in 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012. Last year brought the release of a DVD featuring a performance of Juliusz Zarębski’s Quintet in G minor during the ‘Chopin and his Europe’ festival in 2011, in which Argerich was joined by Bartłomiej Nizioł, Agata Szymczewska, Lyda Chen and Alexander Neustroev. --- en.chopin.nifc.pl

Martha Argerich – laureatka I nagrody VII Międzynarodowego Konkursu Pianistycznego im. Fryderyka Chopina w Warszawie (1965).

Urodziła się w Buenos Aires (Argentyna). Naukę gry na fortepianie rozpoczęła w wieku 5 lat u Vincenzo Scaramuzzy. Uznawana za cudowne dziecko, wkrótce rozpoczęła także występy publiczne. W 1955 r. przeniosła się do Europy i kontynuowała naukę w Londynie, Wiedniu i Szwajcarii pod kierunkiem Bruno Seidlhofera, Friedricha Guldy, Nikity Magaloffa, Arturo Benedetti Michelangelego oraz Stefana Askenasego.

W 1957 r. wygrała konkursy pianistyczne w Bolzano oraz Genewie, zaś w 1965 r. - Konkurs Chopinowski w Warszawie. Od tego czasu pozostaje jedną z najznakomitszych pianistek świata. Jest wysoko ceniona za interpretacje wirtuozowskiej literatury pianistycznej XIX i XX wieku.

W jej bogatym repertuarze znajdują się m.in. utwory Bacha, Bartoka, Beethovena, Messiaena, Chopina, Schumanna, Liszta, Debussy'ego, Ravela, Francka, Prokofiewa, Strawińskiego, Szostakowicza i Czajkowskiego.

Stale współpracuje z najwybitniejszymi orkiestrami, dyrygentami i festiwalami muzycznymi z całego świata. W działalności artystycznej pianistki, ważną rolę odgrywa kameralistyka. Regularnie występuje i nagrywa z pianistami Nelsonem Freire i Alexandrem Rabinovitchem, wiolonczelistą Mischą Maiskym i skrzypkiem Gidonem Kremerem. Jak mówi: "Taka harmonia w grupie ludzi daje mi poczucie siły i spokoju."

Dokonała licznych nagrań dla wytworni EMI, Sony, Philips, Teldec i DGG. Wśród przyznanych jej nagród fonograficznych wymienić należy: Grammy za nagranie koncertów Bartoka i Prokofiewa; tytuł Artysty Roku magazynu Gramophone; nagrodę za najlepsze nagranie koncertu fortepianowego - płyta z koncertami Chopina; Choc du Monde de la Musique, tytuł Artysty Roku przyznawany przez niemieckich recenzentów muzycznych; kolejne dwie nagrody Grammy za Suitę z Kopciuszka Prokofiewa w wersji na dwa fortepiany z Mikhailem Pletnevem (2005) oraz rok później - za II i III Koncert fortepianowy Beethovena z Orkiestrą Kameralną Gustava Mahlera pod kierunkiem Claudio Abbado, tytuł Płyty Roku Sunday Times oraz BBC Music Magazine Award za album z muzyką Szostakowicza (EMI, 2007).

Od 1998 r. artystka jest Dyrektorem Artystycznym Festiwalu w Beppu w Japonii. W 1999 r. stworzyła Międzynarodowy Konkurs Pianistyczny i Festiwal Marthy Argerich w Buenos Aires, zaś w 2002 r. - Progetto Martha Argerich w Lugano.

Otrzymała liczne nagrody i wyróżnienia, m.in.: Krzyż Oficerski (1996) i Krzyż Komandorski (2004) Orderu Sztuki i Literatury od rządu francuskiego; nagrodę Accademia di Santa Cecilia w Rzymie w 1997 r.; Order Wschodzącego Słońca ze Złotymi Promieniami i Wstęgą – od cesarza Japonii oraz prestiżową „Praemium Imperiale” Japońskiego Stowarzyszenia Sztuki w 2005 r.

Już kilkakrotnie koncertowała w Warszawie na zaproszenie Narodowego Instytutu Fryderyka Chopina, występując podczas kolejnych edycji festiwalu Chopin i jego Europa (2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012). W 2012 r. ukazała się płyta DVD z jej wykonaniem Kwintetu g-moll Juliusza Zarębskiego razem z Bartłomiejem Niziołem, Agatą Szymczewską, Lydą Chen i Alexandrem Neustroevem, które to nagranie zostało zarejestrowane podczas festiwalu Chopin i jego Europa w 2011 r. --- pl.chopin.nifc.pl

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Robert Schumann
Kinderszenen, Op.15
1. Von fremden Landern und Menschen (1:51)
2. Kuriose Geschichte (1:04)
3. Hasche-Mann (0:28)
4. Bittendes Kind (0:59)
5. Gluckes genug (1:03)
6. Wichtige Begebenheit (0:48)
7. Traumerei (2:59)
8. Am Kamin (0:51)
9. Ritter vom Steckenpferd (0:35)
10. Fast zu ernst (2:00)
11. Furchtenmachen (1:33)
12. Kind im Einschlummern (2:23)
13. Der Dichter spricht (2:12)

Kreisleriana, Op.16 
1. Ausserst bewegt (2:35)
2. Sehr innig und nicht zu rasch - Intermezzo (9:40)
3. Sehr aufgeregt (4:32)
4. Sehr langsam (3:54)
5. Sehr lebhaft (3:08)
6. Sehr langsam (4:11)
7. Sehr rasch (2:06)
8. Schnell und spielend (3:27)

Piano Sonata No.2 In G Minor, Op.22 
1. So rasch wie moglich - Schneller - Noch schneller (5:31)
2. Andantino (4:56)
3. Scherzo (Sehr rasch und markiert) (1:31)
4. Rondo (Presto - Etwas langsamer - Prestissimo, quasi cadenza (4:41)

Martha Argerich - Piano

Martha has always "reached" me with her playing. She is a technical virtuoso(a?), yet she conveys a passion in her playing that is reminiscent of Horowitz's passion. Just more technically precise. There is nothing effeminate about her style. She brings passion, thunder, and pianissimo when needed to every piece of music she plays. She is a complete pianist and I am so fortunate that I have had the opportunity to hear her live at many Carnegie Hall recitals and concerts,

This collection is nothing short of wonderful. Eventually I will own every recording that is available to the public that she has put out. Her Ravel is soothing & colorful, her Schumann is expressive and deep without ever being sentimental, Her Liszt is passionate and full of fire, Her Tchaikovsky transcriptions are fun and lively and her Bartok is played with an understated expression that compliments every note. Even her Rachmaninoff Symphonic Dances (which I'm not a huge fan of compositionally) enticed me with her energy & her technique. I will no doubt be pursuing her other collections. --- Frank D. V., amazon.com

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Franz Liszt - Piano Sonata in B minor
2-1 	Lento assai - Allegro energico 	
2-2 	Grandioso 	
2-3 	Cantando espressivo 	
2-4 	Pesante - Recitativo 	
2-5 	Andante sostenuto 	
2-6 	Quasi Adagio 	
2-7 	Allegro energico 	
2-8 	Più mosso 	
2-9 	Cantando espressivo senza slentare 	
2-10 	Stretta quasi Presto - Presto - Prestissimo 	
2-11 	Andante sostenuto - Allegro moderato - Lento assai 	
2-12 	Hungarian Rhapsody, for piano No. 6 in D flat major, S. 244/6 (LW A132/6) 

Johannes Brahms - Rhapsodies Op. 79 Nos 1 & 2
2-13 	No. 1 in B minor. Agitato 	
2-14 	No. 2 in G minor. Molto passionato, ma non troppo allegro 	

Maurice Ravel - Gaspard de la nuit
2-15 	Ondine 	
2-16 	Le Gibet 	
2-17 	Scarbo 	

Sergei Prokofiev
2-18 	Toccata for piano in D minor, Op. 11

Martha Argerich – piano

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Maurice Ravel Gaspard de la nuit
2-15 	Ondine 	
2-16 	Le Gibet 	
2-17 	Scarbo 	
2-18 	Toccata for piano in D minor, Op. 11 (Composed By Sergei Prokofiev)

3-1 	Jeux d'eau
Maurice Ravel Sonatine
3-2 	Modéré 	
3-3 	Mouvement de Menuet 	
3-4 	Animé 	
Maurice Ravel Valses nobles et sentimentales
3-5 	Modéré - très franc 	
3-6 	Assez lent - avec une expression intense 	
3-7 	Modéré 	
3-8 	Assez animé 	
3-9 	Presque lent - dans un sentiment intime 	
3-10 	Vif 	
3-11 	Moins vif 	
3-12 	Epilogue: Lent 	
Maurice Ravel Ma mère l'oye, for piano, 4 hands (or orchestra)
3-13 	Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant: Lent 	
3-14 	Petit Poucet: Très Modéré 	
3-15 	Laideronnette, Impératrice des pagodes: Mouvement de Marche 	
3-16 	Les Entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête: Mouvement de Valse très modéré 	
3-17 	Le Jardin féerique: Lent et grave 	
Maurice Ravel Rhapsodie espagnole, for orchestra (or 2 pianos)
3-18 	Prélude à la nuit: Modéré 	
3-19 	Malagueña: Assez vif 	
3-20 	Habanera: En demi-teinte et d'un rhythme las 	
3-21 	Feria: Assez vif

Martha Argerich - piano
Nelson Freire - piano
Peter Sadlo, Edgar Guggeis - percussion

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Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Nutcracker, suite from the ballet, Op. 71a
4-1 	Ouverture miniature: Allegro guisto 	
4-2 	Danses caractéristiques: a. Marche: Tempo di marcia viva 	
4-3 	Danse de la Fée Dragée: Andante non troppo 	
4-4 	Danse russe Trépak: Tempo di Trepak, molto vivace 	
4-5 	Danse arabe: Allegretto 	
4-6 	Danse chinoise: Allegro moderato 	
4-7 	Danse des mirlitons: Moderato assai 	
4-8 	Valse des Fleurs: Tempo di valse 

Sergey Rachmaninov Symphonic Dances, for orchestra (or 2 pianos), Op. 45
4-9 	Non allegro 	
4-10 	Andante con moto (Tempo di valse) 	
4-11 	Lento assai - Allegro vivace 	

Béla Bartók Sonata for 2 pianos & 2 percussion, Sz. 110, BB 15
4-12 	Assai lento - Allegro molto 	
4-13 	Lento, ma non troppo 	
4-14 	Allegro non troppo

Martha Argerich - piano
Nelson Freire - piano
Peter Sadlo, Edgar Guggeis - percussion

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Prokofiev- Piano concerto no. 3
1. Andante – Allegro
2. Tema con variazione
3. Allegro ma non troppo

Martha Argerich - piano 
European Community Youth Orchestra 
Mstislav Rostropovich - conductor
(live, 22.8.1992, London Proms)

4. Prokofiev- Piano sonata no. 3

Martha Argerich - piano 
(12/1967, Berlin radio studio)

Ravel-  Gaspard de la Nuit
5. Ondine
6. Le gibet
7. Scarbo

Martha Argerich - piano 
(16.3.1960, studio of the Norddeutscher Rundfunk, Hamburg)

Prokofiev- Piano sonata no. 7
8. Allegro inquieto
9. Andante caloroso
10. Precipitato

Martha Argerich - piano 
(16.3.1960, studio of the Norddeutscher Rundfunk, Hamburg)

Sergey Prokofiev - Piano Concerto No. 3 in C major, Op. 26.

For his third concerto for piano and orchestra, Prokofiev looked to the past for inspiration: this concerto incorporates material derived from sketches made between 1911 and 1918. The first movement contains two themes that were written in 1916, plus a chordal passage first sketched in 1911; the second movement contains a theme and variations that was written in 1913, while the final movement uses thematic material from a discarded string quartet begun in 1918. When he began composing this concerto during a holiday in Brittany, Prokofiev wrote, "I already had all the thematic material I needed except for the third theme of the finale and the subordinate theme of the first movement." The Third Piano Concerto is perhaps Prokofiev's best known essay in this genre, and approaches Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninov in popularity and frequency of performance. Its opus number places it just after the "Classical" First Symphony of 1917, and the concerto is, in its way, similar to the First Symphony is a number of ways: both works are lively, acerbic, with brilliant orchestration and a certain transparent texture. Both pieces are also clearly the work of a deft young composer of considerable technical skill; however, the two works differ greatly in regards to their reception. The "Classical" Symphony was reasonably well received in Russia, where it was performed only once before Prokofiev emigrated to the United States. Subsequent performances of the symphony in America were very successful. The Third Concerto, on the other hand, did not fare so well, and after a good premiere in Chicago (along with the opera Love for Three Oranges) in 1921, the work was roundly denounced in New York.

The concerto displays much of the "harmonic liveliness," in Nancy Siff's words, of the mid-period symphonies, with its sudden shifts from key to key and chromatic harmony. The sophistication and bravura generally associated with Prokofiev's music is ever present, as is the humor found in many of his orchestral works. The concerto is in a traditional three-movement concerto form (the only one of Prokofiev's five piano concertos to use the traditional form), beginning and ending with fast movements that flank a slow middle movement. Each movement is about the same length, and the thematic weight and interest is distributed evenly throughout the movements. The work begins with a vivacious opening movement, which includes a humorous march underlined by castanets, followed by the five variations of the second movement, and concludes with a grandiose display of colorful harmonies and virtuosic orchestration. The solo writing for the piano is also virtuosic, and at times quite percussive. ---Alexander Carpenter, allmusic.com

Sergey Prokofiev - Piano Sonata No. 3 in A minor ("From Old Notebooks"), Op. 28.

Prokofiev completed both the Third and Fourth Piano Sonatas in 1917, though they owe much of their existence to sketches dating from 10 years earlier. Both sonatas are subtitled "D'après de vieux cahiers" (From the Old Notebooks), and are re-constructions of compositions and sketches from 1907-1908. Prokofiev's First and Third Sonatas are identical in structure; both are single movement works using sonata-allegro form. Both sonatas are also studies in contrast between the lyrical and what pianist Murray McLachlan calls Prokofiev's "Scherzando-motoric" style. The two works differ significantly in one important respect: the Third Sonata is a highly unified work, compared to the less mature, somewhat derivative First Sonata. In the Third Sonata, the themes are more original, and are developed in a more natural, less pedantic way than in the First Sonata, and thematic material is developed in the former all the way through the piece, whereas the latter sometimes substitutes figuration and sequential padding for development. This piece was surprisingly well received by critics (Prokofiev was no critic's darling, to be sure), who praised its unity and sincerity.

The Third Sonata is a short piece, but has been described by some commentators as one of Prokofiev's best piano compositions, by virtue of its passion and freshness. It is a definite departure from the Second Sonata of 1912, a lighthearted, witty virtuoso piece, profoundly humorous and volatile. By 1917, Prokofiev had moved beyond the humor and episodic structure of the Second Sonata, creating with his Third Sonata a work of great drama, symphonic in scope and character. The sophistication and maturity of this sonata are evident from the outset, as the two themes of the exposition -- the angular first theme and the lyrical second theme -- are clearly stated before dissolving into an energetic and powerful development section. Both themes are developed rigorously, and are transformed in character throughout this middle section of the piece, leading into the recapitulation. It is at this point that Prokofiev diverges significantly from standard sonata form, choosing to completely omit the first theme from the recapitulation; instead, the bridge passage from the exposition is heard, followed by an almost unrecognizably transformed version of the second theme. The piece ends with a coda, in which the second theme is finally heard in its original form.

After the Third Sonata would come a period of deep introspection for the composer, a period in which he would compose a number of extremely lyrical and introverted pieces, beginning with the Fourth Piano Sonata. ---Alexander Carpenter, allmusic.com

Maurice Ravel - Gaspard de la nuit, for piano.

Though competent at the piano, Ravel was no virtuoso; so, when he set out to compose a work for the instrument that would be, in his own words, "more difficult than [Balakirev's] Islamey," he drew heavily on the brilliant pianistic style of Franz Liszt to fulfill his ambition. The resulting three-part suite, Gaspard de la nuit (1908), forever changed the technical landscape of keyboard music. Perhaps pianist Alfred Cortot put it best when he called the work "one of the most extraordinary examples of instrumental ingenuity which the industry of composers has ever produced."

Gaspard de la nuit, subtitled "Three Poems after Aloysius Bertrand," takes as its inspiration Bertrand's same-titled 1842 collection of medieval tales, which the author claimed were whispered to him in the night by the devil, Gaspard. Each of the pieces in Ravel's suite is prefaced by one of the poems; no doubt the same macabre streak that led Ravel to spend many nights absorbed in the stories of Edgar Allen Poe is also responsible for the composer's powerful attraction to Bertrand's rather dark work. Gaspard was premiered in January 1909 by pianist Ricardo Viñes, who had introduced Ravel to Bertrand's work.

Each of the three pieces of the suite, "Ondine," "Le Gibet," and "Scarbo," presents not only an individual assortment of pianistic demands but also a unique musical language and narrative vision. In the first piece Ravel undertakes the portrayal of the water nymph Ondine's seduction of a mortal man. Shimmering C sharp major figuration soon becomes the background for a transparent melodic strand marked très doux et très expressif (very soft and expressive). The fluid background pauses only once during "Ondine" -- for a brief pianissimo Très lent that precedes the final, quicksilver cadenza.

"Le Gibet" (The Gibbet) is a musical horror story of such textural density that Ravel notated nearly all of the piece on three staves. An extract from the preface of the corresponding poem provides some idea of the musical atmosphere: "It is the bell sounding from the walls of a city far away below the horizon, and the carcass of a dead man hanging from a gibbet, reddened by the setting sun." Ravel's "bells" are the slightly irregularly grouped B flats that sound continuously throughout the piece, around which the composer weaves music of total psychological suspense. The dynamic never exceeds piano, and Ravel demands that the performer play "without expression" for the last portion of the piece.

"Scarbo" is 19 pages of some of the most frightful digital difficulties ever devised. Scarbo himself is a somewhat malicious night-dwarf who comes, laughing, to horrify, and then disappears without a trace. Here Ravel places the greatest emphasis on his singular sense of rhythm; witness the perfectly placed pauses throughout. Rapid repeated notes, wild arpeggiations, and sudden shifts of texture and dynamics are among the hurdles pianists must overcome; a famous passage in parallel seconds seems to owe its existence to the composer's own peculiarly double-jointed thumb, and is therefore quite challenging for those without such a physical anomaly. After a tremendous triple-fortissimo climax, the music dissolves into impish pianissimo thirty-second notes. ---Blair Johnston, allmusic.com

Sergey Prokofiev - Piano Sonata No. 7 in B flat major ("War Sonata 2/Stalingrad"), Op. 83.

This is the middle panel in Prokofiev's grand trilogy of works called War Sonatas. It is the most popular of the three and, at about 16 or 17 minutes, the shortest as well. The first movement, marked Allegro inquieto, opens with a dark, menacing theme whose militaristic vehemence seizes the expressive reins at times with insistent bass chords that hammer out a crushing rhythm. The listener immediately senses a connection to war and struggle in this lively but conflicted opening. A lyrical second theme introduces gentler music, but does not break the dark mood. In the development section, a tense buildup constructed mainly on the first theme leads to a powerful climax, after which the music gradually becomes more tranquil, the second theme being reprised in a gloomy ethereality. A brief, rhythmic coda follows, its lively springiness seeming to sputter and stagger as it reaches the finish line.

The second movement is marked Andante caloroso and features a consoling main theme whose gently rocking lilt and overripe textures convey an almost decadent sense, as if its beauty is beginning to decay. Some listeners hear it as a kind of dark salon-like creation in its perfume-drenched melancholy and quasi-pop catchiness. The middle section turns intense and climaxes in a tolling-bell passage that eventually gives way to a reprise of the main theme.

The Precipitato finale is the most famous and dramatic movement of the three. Cast in an ABCBA structure, it opens with a driving main theme whose rhythmic jazzy elements convey a frenetic, fight-for-dear-life sense. The second theme maintains the perpetual-motion drive, but now the feeling of desperation takes on an insistent, if less harried manner, before yielding to the ensuing idea, which rises from the bass regions to turn almost subdued in the upper ranges. After the second theme reappears the main theme returns for a crashing, dissonant but ultimately triumphant conclusion in a blaze of dazzling virtuosic writing. ---Robert Cummings, allmusic.com

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1. Ballade No.1 In G Minor, Op.23 8:29 
2. 12 Etudes, Op.10 - No. 4 In C Sharp Minor 1:56 
3. Mazurka No.26 In C Sharp Minor Op.41 No.4 2:56 
4. Mazurka No.27 In E Minor Op.41 No.1 1:54 
5. Mazurka No.15 In C Op.24 No.2 1:52 
6. Mazurka No.40 In F Minor Op.63 No.2 1:32 
7. Mazurka No.23 In D Op.33 No.2 2:06 
8. Nocturne No.4 In F, Op.15 No.1 3:40 
9. Nocturne No.16 In E Flat, Op.55 No.2 4:17 
10. Mazurka No.36 In A Minor Op.59 No.1 3:35 
11. Mazurka No.37 In A Flat Op.59 No.2 2:24 
12. Mazurka No.38 In F Sharp Minor Op.59 No.3 2:52 
13. Piano Sonata No.3 In B Minor, Op.58 - 1. Allegro Maestoso 10:45 
14. Piano Sonata No.3 In B Minor, Op.58 - 2. Scherzo (Molto Vivace) 2:17 
15. Piano Sonata No.3 In B Minor, Op.58 - 3. Largo 9:14 
16. Piano Sonata No.3 In B Minor, Op.58 - 4. Finale (Presto Non Tanto) 4:30

Martha Argerich - piano

Martha Argerich playing Chopin has long been known as a thing of beauty and her recordings are acknowledged for their power and musicality. In celebration of the Chopin Year, Deutsche Grammophon is extremely excited to present an entire CD of previously unreleased radio recordings from 1959 and 1967 of Argerich performing Chopin. Argerich triumphed at the International Chopin Competition in 1965 at the age of 24; therefore, the 1959 recording gives us a very early glimpse of Argerich and the explosive power that made her so irresistible. The majority of this CD is of recordings made in 1967 at the RIAS and WDR studios along with a live March 15, 1967 recording of the Third Sonata from the Hochschule für Musik, Berlin. These performances, all released for the first time, include works otherwise not recorded by her (Ballade no. 1, Mazurkas opp. 24/2, 33/2, 41/1&2, C# minor Etude). With over an hour of material, this is truly a gem that has been lovingly rescued from obscurity. Recorded live on 15 March 1967. ---Editorial Review, mazon.com

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