Rarities of Piano Music at the Schloss vor Husum 2000, Vol. 12

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
1. Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy (arr: Michail Pletnev)

Carl Maria von Weber
2. “Perpetuum mobile” from Sonata No 1, Op. 24 – Rondo. Presto

Johannes Brahms
3. “Herzlich tut mich verlangen” (from 11 Choral Preludes for organ, Op. 122) (arr.: Eusebius Mandyezewski)

Leos Janácek
On an Overgrown Path
4. A Blown-Away Leaf
5. Come with us!
6. Words fail!
7. In Tears

Marc-André Hamelin
8. Music Box
9. “Se tu m’ami” (Tribute to Giovanni Battista Pergolesi (from: “Con intimissimo sentimento”, 2000)

Astor Piazzolla
10. Milonga del Angelo

Benjamin Godard
11. Mazurka No. 4, Op. 103

Nikolai Medtner
12. Sonata-Elegie, Op. 11 No. 2

Antoine Mariotte
Sonata in F-sharp minor
13. Fantaisie
14. Nocturne
15. Divertissement

Francis Poulenc
16. Les Chernins de l’Amour

Friedrich Hollaender
17. An allern sind die Juden schuld

Stephen Sondheim
18. Loosing My Mind

In the English comedy playlet, “Dinner for One”, shown every New Year’s Eve on German TV though almost unknown in Britain, the following dialogue repeatedly takes place between an increasingly drunk butler and his mistress, as he prepares to drink her health on behalf of four absent guests:

James (Freddie Frinton):

“Same procedure as last year? ”

Miss Sophie (May Warden):

“Same procedure as every year.”

The fourteenth festival in Husum of “Rarities of Piano Music” could indeed be said to have followed the “same procedure as every year”, in that there were eight concerts of piano music in a week towards the end of August, and that a loyal audience from as far as Japan and the USA converged on this small North Sea port to hear them. But what keeps them coming is by no means the same: it is the unfamiliar repertoire which very few other festivals present, played by outstanding musicians in the intimate surroundings of Schloss vor Husum.

There were also two differences for the special year 2000: for the first time since the inaugural year of 1987, one recital consisted of music for piano duet; and a late-night programme of cabaret songs was added to the usual mixture. In general it was considered to be one of the strongest programs in recent years. The presence of the Schleswig-Holstein Minister-President Heide Simonis at one recital reflected the great respect which this modest festival has earned. It is hoped that this may lead to some more support from the State in ensuring that the “Rarities” week can continue in parallel with the richly-fundcd and better known Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival.

As usual this CD can only give a suggestion of the rich variety of music which was heard, but we think it offers some unique recordings in outstanding performances.

RELEASE DATE: August 2001

CATALOGUE NUMBER: DACOCD 559

EAN: 5709499559000