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Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev: Piano Concerto, Music for solo Piano
Catalogue Number: TOCC0042
Piano Concerto in E flat
Joseph Banowetz, piano The piano music of Sergei Taneyev (1856–1915) is one of Russian’s hidden secrets. Student and friend of Tchaikovsky, Taneyev – a formidable pianist and composer of the front rank – has never had the attention he deserves. The CD couples a first-ever recording of the only two movements he recorded of his youthful piano concerto with more premiere recordings of music for solo piano from across his career. The Four Improvisations, composed jointly by Taneyev, Rachmaninov, Arensky and Glazunov, bring a composite first recording for all four composers. And The Composer’s Birthday, for narrator and piano, four hands, was written as a light-hearted birthday present for Tchaikovsky. Booklet texts (PDF) |
Track Listing, MP3 Downloads and Streaming Samples
| Track No. | Track Title / Details | Duration | Sample | Add to Cart | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOWNLOAD COMPLETE ALBUM | 77:18 | ||||
| 1-2 | Piano Concerto in E flat (1876) Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz, piano Russian Philharmonic of Moscow, orchestra Thomas Sanderling, conductor (first recording) |
33:31 | |||
| 1 | I. Allegro | 25:03 |
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| 2 | II. Andante funebre | 8:28 |
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| 3 | Prelude in F major (1876) Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz, piano |
3:18 |
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| 4 | Lullaby in B flat major (1876) Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz, piano |
3:28 |
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| 5-17 | Theme and Variations in C minor (1876) [tempo indications in square brackets are Pavel Lamm’s editorial suggestions] Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz, piano (first recording) |
10:53 | |||
| 5 | Theme | 0:48 |
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| 6 | Variation I, [Un poco più mosso] | 0:44 |
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| 7 | Variation II, Allegretto alla quartetto di P. Tschaikovsky | 0:57 |
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| 8 | Variation III, [Allegro] | 0:57 |
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| 9 | Variation IV, [Allegretto] | 0:20 |
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| 10 | Variation V, Andante espressivo | 0:50 |
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| 11 | Variation VI, Allegro | 0:30 |
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| 12 | Variation VII, Andante | 0:46 |
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| 13 | Variation VIII, Allegro vivace | 0:17 |
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| 14 | Variation IX, Allegro | 0:30 |
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| 15 | Variation X, [Con moto] | 0:58 |
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| 16 | Variation XI, Andante | 0:50 |
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| 17 | Variation XII, Andante [non troppo lento] | 2:26 |
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| 18 | Allegro in E flat major (1876) Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz, piano (first recording) |
7:47 |
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| 19 | Andantino semplice in B minor (1876) Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz, piano |
5:09 |
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| 20 | Repose (Elegy) in E major (1876) Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz, piano |
3:07 |
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| 21 | March in D minor (1876) Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz, piano (first recording) |
2:06 |
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| 22-25 | Four Improvisations (with Arensky, Glazunov and Rachmaninov) (1876) [tempo indications in square brackets are Pavel Lamm’s editorial suggestions] Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz, piano (first recording) |
4:03 | |||
| 22 | No. 1, [Moderato], E minor | 1:15 |
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| 23 | No. 2, Allegretto, C major | 0:46 |
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| 24 | No. 3, [Allegro scherzando], B flat minor | 0:43 |
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| 25 | No. 4, Largo, F minor | 1:19 |
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| 26 | The Composer’s Birthday, for narrator and piano, four hands (1876) Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Vladimir Ashkenazy, narrator Joseph Banowetz and Adam Wodnicki, piano duet (first recording) |
2:03 |
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| 27 | The Composer’s Birthday, for piano, four hands (1876) Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer Joseph Banowetz and Adam Wodnicki, piano duet (first recording) |
1:53 |
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Artists
Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev, composer
Joseph Banowetz, piano
Russian Philharmonic of Moscow, orchestra
[credit: Oleg Nachinkin, 2011]
Thomas Sanderling, conductor
Vladimir Ashkenazy, narrator
[credit: Petr Novák, Wikipedia]
Joseph Banowetz and Adam Wodnicki, piano duet
Reviews
…Gorgeous Playing
The prize here is a sampling of Taneyev's piano music, which sounds like a cross between Schumann and Tchaikovsky. Mr. Banowetz plays gorgeously, with a warm, unforced tone and natural expressivity. He's joined by faculty colleague Adam Wodnicki in Taneyev's short, four-hands birthday tribute to Tchaikovsky, performed both with and without narration (spoken in Russian by Vladimir Ashkenazy)…
Scott Cantrell The Dallas Morning News
Last year saw the 150th anniversary of the birth of Sergei Taneyev, and this enterprising release by Toccata Classics is devoted entirely to first recordings of his work. (See our article about the composer on page 62 for further background.)
In the Piano Concerto we see a tremendous feeling for atmosphere and an advanced understanding both of motivic treatment and of orchestration. The piano writing is intense and rich, and Joseph Banowetz plays with colour and persuasiveness, if not always with the maximum degree of imagination. There is a clear debt to Tchaikovsky in many of the textures, but a more advanced harmonic sense and a more subtle treatment of the thematic material, which is approached symphonically and in a rather Brahmsian grand manner. It is not difficult upon hearing this music to realise how Medtner arrived at his fusion of Russian Romantic temperament with a strict approach to form and development. It is also easy to imagine this work gaining greater popularity if performed more regularly.
The solo music includes four charming Improvisations to which Taneyev contributed. As a miniaturist, Taneyev stands with contemporaries such as Kopyloff in his ability to create a distinct mood with economy of gesture, and produces some attractive melodic ideas. One striking miniature is The Composer’s Birthday, where Banowetz is joined by Adam Wodnicki as his piano duet partner and Vladimir Ashkenazy as narrator, for a delightful piece that ends with a quote from The Nutcracker.
This is an extremely worthwhile disc to explore, and hopefully it will be the first of many to bring Taneyev back into the spotlight.
John Kersey International PIano
An Intellectual Force
Ron Bierman Music & Vision
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