COMPOSERS: Henselt/Alkan
LABELS: Hyperion
WORKS: Piano Concerto in F minor; Variations de concert; Concerto da camera in C sharp minor; Concerto da camera in A minor
PERFORMER: Marc-André Hamelin (piano)BBC Scottish SO/Martyn Brabbins
CATALOGUE NO: CDA 66717 DDD
The neglect of Henselt’s Piano Concerto is bizarre. It shares both the key and the poignant lyricism of Chopin’s Second Concerto, as well as offering a virtuosic showcase comparable to any mid-19th-century concerto. By the second listening you will be humming along to its graceful melodies as though you had known them all your life. Of all the concertos in this series, it is perhaps the most immediately appealing. Christopher Lambton
Henselt/Alkan
The neglect of Henselt’s Piano Concerto is bizarre. It shares both the key and the poignant lyricism of Chopin’s Second Concerto, as well as offering a virtuosic showcase comparable to any mid-19th-century concerto. By the second listening you will be humming along to its graceful melodies as though you had known them all your life. Of all the concertos in this series, it is perhaps the most immediately appealing. Christopher Lambton
Published: January 20, 2012 at 2:30 pm