Mendelssohn: Lieder ohne Worte

by Igor Levit

Overview

One might not expect an album of Mendelssohn's Lieder ohne Worte ("Songs Without Words") from pianist Igor Levit, whose offerings generally run to Beethoven or to ambitious concept albums. However, a look at the graphics and its striking Star of David pendant indicates what is happening. Levit intends the album as a memorial for the October 7th attacks in Israel, after which he had struggled for some weeks. Says Levit: "I made this recording out of a very, very strong inner necessity. I spent the first four or five weeks after the attack on October 7th in a mixture of speechlessness and total paralysis. And at some point, it became clear that I had no other tools than to react as an artist. I have the piano. I have my music." Proceeds from the album will be donated to German organizations combating anti-Semitism. As for the music itself, Levit strikes a tone of remarkable gravity. Mendelssohn isn't usually his thing, and he says he chose the Lieder ohne Worte for a melancholy he found in them. He doesn't mention Mendelssohn's Jewish background, but it fits into his effort. The album ends with a Prelude by another Jewish composer, Charles-Valentin Alkan, that has quite a haunting effect. The Mendelssohn pieces are carefully controlled and sober. Even apart from the tragic circumstances that gave birth to it, this album is something of a landmark in the performance of Mendelssohn's piano music. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	01/26/2024
Label:	Sony Classical
UPC:	0196588789823
Rank:	44953

Tracks

1. Songs without words, Book I Op. 19b~No. 1 in E major. Andante con moto
2. Songs without words, Book I Op. 19b~No. 2 in A minor. Andante espressivo
3. Songs without words, Book I Op. 19b~No. 4 in A major. Moderato
4. Songs without words, Book I Op. 19b~No. 6 in G minor Venetian Gondola Song. Andante sostenuto
5. Songs without words, Book II Op. 30~No. 1 in E-flat major. Andante espressivo
6. Songs without words, Book II Op. 30~No. 3 in E major. Adagio non troppo
7. Songs without words, Book II Op. 30~No. 6 in F-sharp minor Venetian Gondola Song. Allegretto tranquillo
8. Songs without words, Book III Op. 38~No. 2 in C minor. Allegro non troppo
9. Songs without words, Book III Op. 38~No. 6 in A-flat major Duetto. Andante con moto
10. Songs without words, Book IV Op. 53~No.4 in F major Sadness of Soul. Adagio
11. Songs without words, Book IV Op. 53~No. 5 in A minor Folksong. Allegro
12. Songs without words, Book V Op. 62~No. 3 in E minor Funeral March. Andante maestoso
13. Songs without words, Book V Op. 62~No. 5 in A minor Venetian Gondola Song. Andante con moto
14. Songs without words, Book VIII Op. 102~No. 1 in E minor. Andante un poco agitato
15. Chanson de la folle au bord de la mer. Lento Op. 31/8

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Igor Levit   Primary Artist,Piano

Technical Credits

Charles-Valentin Alkan   Composer
Andreas Neubronner   Engineer,Producer,Mastering Engineer
Markus C. Hurek   Photography
Igor Levit   Liner Notes
Katrin Bahrmann   Artwork
Felix Mendelssohn   Composer