Chopin, Liszt & Schumann & Encore Pieces

CD 1: Chopin: 12 Études, Op. 10 12 Études, Op. 25 Prélude in C major, Op. 28/1 Berceuse in D flat major, Op. 57 Waltz in E flat major, Op. 18 Waltz in D flat major, Op. 64/1 Fantaisie-Impromptu in C sharp minor, Op. 66

Mendelssohn/Hutcheson: Scherzo from ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’

Smetana: Polka No 3 in F major from Czech Dances

Delibes/Dohnanyi: Waltz from ‘Naila’ (abridged)

CD 2: Mozart: Serenade from ‘Don Giovanni’ (arr. Backhaus)

Schubert: Marche militaire in E flat major, D733/3 (arr. Backhaus)

Schubert: Soirée de Vienne No 6 in A major, S 427/6 (arr. Liszt)

Liszt: Waldesrauschen, S145/1 Liebesträume No. 3, S541/3 Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 in C sharp minor, S244/2

Schumann: Widmung, S566 (arr. Liszt) Aufschwung No. 2 from Fantasiestücke, Op. 12 9. Traumes Wirren No. 7 from Fantasiestücke, Op. 12 Nachtstück in F major, Op. 23/4 Fantasie in C major, Op. 17

Albeniz: Triana No. 3 from Iberia, Book 2 Tango, Op. 165/2 (arr. Godowsky)

Moszkowski: Caprice espagnole, Op. 37

Wilhelm Backhaus (1884–1969) left a 60-year recorded legacy which began in 1908, but the champion of Beethoven and Brahms we know from his later years performed a much wider repertoire before the war. This set focuses on this more ‘romantic’ repertoire – his Chopin études from 1928 were the first complete recorded cycle and still astonish with their virtuosity. His Schumann Fantasy is another landmark recording, the 78rpm era benchmark, and what a delightful surprise it is to hear him in his own spectacular transcriptions or in works by Albéniz and Moszkowski.