Liszt: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2; Piano Sonata

by Alexander Ullman, Andrew Litton, BBC Symphony Orchestra

Overview

Partly as a result of the old film Lisztomania and its Rick Wakeman soundtrack, but with plenty of contemporary evidence as well, the general impression of Franz Liszt is that he was a heroic, preternaturally charismatic wild man, the forerunner of the modern rock star. However, it is worth remembering that this was just one side of his musical personality. Here, pianist Alexander Ullman offers an unheroic reading of Liszt's three large works in (more or less) Classical forms, the Piano Concerto No. 1 in E flat major, the Piano Concerto No. 2 in A major, and the epic Piano Sonata in B minor. He treats these piano pieces as if they were the orchestral music to which Liszt turned later in his career, tracing small thematic connections in detailed readings with an impressive degree of keyboard precision. Sample the fugue section from the B minor sonata, where Ullman achieves a quick, skittering effect at a rapid tempo that's quite haunting once one gets over the novelty. Certainly, there are weightier readings of the sonata's opening material and of the concertos' outer movements, but Ullman is thoughtful everywhere, and his interaction with Andrew Litton and the BBC Symphony orchestra is careful and well worked out. With excellent, idiomatic sound from Henry Wood Hall, this is a fine counter-to-type Liszt recording. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	06/24/2022
Label:	Rubicon
UPC:	5065002228222
Rank:	95609

Tracks

1. Piano Concerto No. 1 in E flat S. 124~I. Allegro maestoso - Tempo giusto
2. Piano Concerto No. 1 in E flat S. 124~II. Quasi Adagio
3. Piano Concerto No. 1 in E flat S. 124~III. Allegretto vivace: Allegro animato
4. Piano Concerto No. 1 in E flat S. 124~IV. Allegro marziale animato
5. Piano Sonata in B minor S.178~Lento assai -
6. Piano Sonata in B minor S.178~Allegretto energico come prima -
7. Piano Sonata in B minor S.178~Andante sostenuto -
8. Piano Sonata in B minor S.178~Allegro energico (Fugue) -
9. Piano Sonata in B minor S.178~Recapitulation (accentuato il canto) -
10. Piano Sonata in B minor S.178~Andante sostenuto
11. Piano Concerto No. 2 in A S.125~I. Adagio sostenuto assai -
12. Piano Concerto No. 2 in A S.125~Allegro agitato assai
13. Piano Concerto No. 2 in A S.125~II. Allegro moderato
14. Piano Concerto No. 2 in A S.125~III. Allegro deciso -
15. Piano Concerto No. 2 in A S.125~Marziale un poco meno allegro -
16. Piano Concerto No. 2 in A S.125~IV. Allegro animato

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Alexander Ullman   Primary Artist,Piano
Andrew Litton   Primary Artist,Conductor
BBC Symphony Orchestra   Primary Artist,Orchestra
Susan Monks   Cello

Technical Credits

Franz Liszt   Composer
Matt Russell   Photography
Leslie Howard   Editing
Andrew Keener   Producer
Paul Mitchell   Cover Design
Stephen Bryant   Leader
Matthew Cosgrove   Executive Producer
Paul Roberts   Liner Notes
Matthew Swan   Editing
Matthias Lehmann   Liner Note Translation
Dave Rowell   Engineer