Henry Litolff: Piano Music, Volume One
The British-born Henry Litolff (1818–91) maintains a toehold on the repertoire thanks to the enduring popularity of the Scherzo of his Concerto symphonique No. 4 for piano and orchestra. Litolff’s substantial output of music for solo piano – mostly virtuoso salon miniatures – has entirely slipped from sight, even though in his prime as composer and pianist he was often compared with Liszt, a personal friend. This first album devoted to Litolff’s piano music reveals a fondness for atmospheric character pieces and vigorous dances, not least the polka, mazurka and waltz.
Tingyue Jiang, piano
Listen To This Recording:
- No. 1 Heimgedenken Audio Player
- No. 2 Polen Audio Player
- No. 3 Sehnsucht Audio Player
- No. 4 Der Gondolier Audio Player
- No. 5 Erwartung Audio Player
- No. 6 Frohes Wiedersehn
- No. 1 Tarantelle calabraise Audio Player
- No. 2, 2 Vagabondes Polkas: I Audio Player
- No. 2, 2 Vagabondes Polkas: II Audio Player
- No. 3 La Mazourka Audio Player
- No. 4 Valse styrienne Audio Player
- No. 5 Polonaise brillante Audio Player
- No. 6 Bolero Audio Player
- Invitation à la Polka, Op. 31 (publ. 1846) Audio Player
- La Mazurka, Op. 109 (1861) Audio Player
- Valse élégante, Op. 107 (publ. 1861) Audio Player
- Une fleur du bal, Op. 77 (publ. 1853) Audio Player
- Scherzo, Op. 115 (publ. 1862)
6 Arabesken, Op. 65 (publ. 1854)
Audio Player6 Opuscules, Op. 25 (publ. 1846)
Audio PlayerFIRST RECORDINGS
MusicWeb International :
‘This is a lovely recording; the works are nicely varied and the programme is intelligently put together. It also shows that Litolff is deserving of being remembered for being so much more than being just a “one hit wonder”. Ms Jiang makes a very good case for all the music here and does not put a finger wrong. She is a talented and evocative player who gives real character to these pieces and certainly seems to enjoy performing these works. The cover notes by William Melton are extremely detailed and contain a wealth of information about the composer and his life and times -he certainly had what could be described as an “interesting” life. I warmly recommend this disc to anyone who wants to hear something a little off the beaten track. I shall be listening to it often and am looking forward to volume 2.’
—Jonathan Welsh, MusicWeb International