About this Release
“It is with particular excitement that we welcome the world premiere recording of Musiques foraines, certain to assert itself among the piano duet literature’s most challenging works. A stirring arrangement of Marche du CLXIII–also recorded here for the first time–will provide a fitting opener, with Feuillets de voyage offering an infinite variety of moods and shades.” — Invencia Piano Duo
SCHMITT, FLORENT (1870–1958)
Complete Original Works for Piano Duet and Duo • 3
March of the 163 Infantry Regiment • Travel Pages Books 1 and 2 • Carnival Music
- Invencia Piano Duo
Florent Schmitt remains one of the most important and influential French composers of the twentieth-century. Although he wrote successfully in almost all forms except opera, he was by training a formidable pianist and his writing for the instrument is colourful, bold and harmonically dextrous. Schmitt was also an inveterate traveller and this permeates his poetic and Romantic Feuillets de voyage (Travel Pages), Op. 26 whilst Musiques foraines (Carnival Music) Op. 22 reveals Schmitt the festive humorist.
This recording was made on a modern instrument: Steinway, Model D
Tracklist
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1
Marche du 163 R.I., Op. 48, No. 2 (1916) * (00:07:13)
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Feuillets de voyage, Book 1, Op. 26 (1913) (00:11:00 )
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2
No. 1. Sérénade (00:03:46)
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3
No. 2. Visite (00:03:26)
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4
No. 3. Compliments (00:01:14)
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5
No. 4. Douceur du soir (00:02:12)
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6
No. 5. Danse britannique (00:01:36)
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Feuillets de voyage, Book 2, Op. 26 (1913) (00:13:59 )
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7
No. 1. Berceuse (00:04:27)
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8
No. 2. Mazurka (00:01:30)
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9
No. 3. Marche burlesque (00:02:17)
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10
No. 4. Retour à l'endroit familier (00:03:08)
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11
No. 5. Valse (00:03:45)
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Musiques foraines, Op. 22 (1902) (00:25:22 )
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12
I. Parade * (00:04:38)
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13
II. Boniment de clowns * (00:02:41)
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14
III. La belle Fathma * (00:03:37)
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15
IV. Les éléphants savants * (00:04:29)
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16
V. La pythonisse * (00:04:39)
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17
VI. Chevaux de bois * (00:05:13)
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The Artist(s)
The Invencia Piano Duo has won high critical acclaim for its compelling interpretations of a vast and diverse repertoire. Lutsyshyn was a prizewinner at the Vienna Modern Masters International Performers’s Recording Awards Competition and the William Kapell International Piano Competition. Kasparov won the Albert Roussel Prize at the Orléans International Piano Competition and gave the première of Bartók’s Piano Concerto No. 3 to great acclaim.
https://invenciaduo.wordpress.com
The Composer(s)
Florent Schmitt’s compositions are not easily categorised, and his compositional ethos, based on the requirements of the music or on the literary, historical or geographic source of inspiration, varied more in style than that of his contemporaries. From the age of seventeen, when he devoted himself to a career in music, Schmitt maintained his French musical lineage, incorporating as its essential element what he called “seductive harmony”. Yet his individual musical language gathered energy from all that he experienced. In spite of his connections to the music of his countrymen, Schmitt’s music avoids easy classification. He has been labelled a product of German romanticism, French sensibilities, exotic locales, Russian experimentalism, and orientalisms. In reality he is an independent, creative force to be reckoned with; one who made authentically original contributions to twentieth-century music. Reviews
“Enchanting repertoire, sensitively played and recorded; a must for all pianophiles.” – MusicWeb International
“Technical perfection, synchronicity, collaboration as well as a warm and sonorous timbre constitute an interpretation which is as perfect as the music itself. ” – Classica
“When it comes to expressiveness and communication, Invencia’s elegance and telepathic sense of timing make for a highly satisfying brace of recitals.” – MusicWeb International
Also Available
Grand Piano has gained a reputation for producing high quality recordings of rare keyboard gems. Dedicated to the exploration of undiscovered piano repertoire, the label specialises in complete cycles of piano works by many lesser-known composers, whose output might otherwise have remained unknown and unrecorded.
- info@grandpianorecords.com
