Martha Argerich – Martha Argerich and Friends Live from Lugano 2015 (2016) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz]

Martha Argerich – Martha Argerich and Friends Live from Lugano 2015 (2016)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 03:38:37 minutes | 1,93 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Warner Classics

“Few other musicians spark such adoration among peers and juniors alike as does Martha Argerich,” wrote the British magazine Pianist. The reasons for this adoration are richly in evidence at the annual Progetto Martha Argerich, part of the Lugano Festival in Switzerland.

The 15th edition of the Progetto takes place in June 2016, shortly after Argerich’s 75th birthday – it is hard to believe that 51 years have passed since she triumphed at the seventh International Chopin Competition in Warsaw, where one of the judges (Eugene List) described her as “volcanic … one of nature’s happenings”. Argerich remains a phenomenon, both as a supreme pianist and as a dynamic, much-loved mentor to young musicians. This 3-CD set, recorded in June 2015 and the twelfth Argerich-Lugano release in the Warner Classics catalogue, once again portrays her in both roles.

One of Argerich’s great joys is communal music-making. She has not given a solo recital since 1978, preferring the less lonely pursuits of concertos, chamber music and repertoire for piano duo. Each year in Lugano, she is joined by other eminent musicians, by young artists who have become her protégés, and by former protégés who are now making significant careers. A dazzling variety of music-making ensues as they explore smaller-scale repertoire and works with orchestra.

In 2015, the Progetto Martha Argerich comprised 15 chamber concerts and recitals and two concerts with symphony orchestra. Argerich herself teamed up with other pianists for four works: with her long-time sparring partner Stephen Kovacevich for Debussy’s En blanc et noir; with Lilya Zilberstein for Debussy’s arrangement of Schumann’s Kanonische Studien; with Alexander Mogilevsky for Schubert’s 8 Variations on an Original Theme for piano, D 813, and with Eduardo Hubert (born, like Argerich, in Buenos Aires) for a work by a fellow Argentinian, Luis Bacalov (b.1933), winner of an Academy Award in 1996 for his score for the film Il postino. His 11-movement suite Porteña, performed with the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana under Alexander Vedernikov, is filled with evocations of Argentina’s multicultural capital city. Shifting to the culture of Central Europe, the young Swiss-born violinist Géza Hosszu-Legocky joins Argerich for Bartók’s Romanian Dances, arranged by Zoltán Székely.

Among the celebrated musicians who also feature on the CDs are pianists Nicholas Angelich and Sergio Tiempo, cellist Gautier Capuçon, violinist Ilya Gringolts, clarinettist Paul Meyer and the members of the Margulis Family Trio (pianist Jura, violinist Alissa and cellist Natalia). The rising talents include violinists Mayu Kishima and Andrey Baranov, while other composers in the eclectic repertoire on the CDs are Brahms, Ries, Turina, Poulenc, Glass and yet another Argentinian, Alberto Ginastera, whose centenary is celebrated in 2016.

As The Guardian wrote of an earlier release in Warner Classics’ Argerich-Lugano series: “Even when Argerich is not directly involved, her unique musical spirit seems to hover over the performances; there’s a freshness, a sense of discovery, about all the playing here.”

Tracklist:
Johannes Brahms 1833–1897
Trio in E flat, Op.40 (for viola, violin and piano)
1 I Andante — Poco più animato 7.52
2 II Scherzo: Allegro 6.47
3 III Adagio mesto 7.52
4 IV Finale: Allegro con brio 6.29
Nathan Braude viola | Ilya Gringolts violin | Alexander Mogilevsky piano

Robert Schumann 1810–1856
Six Canonic Etudes, Op.56 (arr. Claude Debussy for 2 pianos)
5 I Pas trop vite 2.29
6 II Avec beaucoup d’expression 3.09
7 III Andantino 1.37
8 IV Espressivo 3.18
9 V Pas trop vite 2.07
10 VI Adagio 3.35
Martha Argerich piano | Lilya Zilberstein piano

Franz Schubert 1797–1828
11 Variations, Op.35 D813 17.24
Martha Argerich piano | Alexander Mogilevsky piano

Johannes Brahms
12 Scherzo from F-A-E Sonata 6.05
Mayu Kishima violin | Akane Sakai piano

Johannes Brahms
Clarinet Trio in A minor, Op.114
13 I Allegro 8.36
14 II Adagio 8.00
15 III Andante grazioso 4.59
16 IV Allegro 5.17
Paul Meyer clarinet | Gautier Capuçon cello | Nicholas Angelich piano

Ferdinand Ries 1784–1838
Piano Quintet in B minor, Op.74
17 I Grave — Allegro con brio 9.30
18 II Larghetto 4.59
19 III Rondo: Allegro 7.23
Andrey Baranov violin | Lyda Chen viola | Jing Zhao cello | Enrico Fagone double bass | Lilya Zilberstein piano

Joaquín Turina 1882–1949
Piano Trio No.2 in B minor, Op.76
20 I Lento — Allegro molto moderato 6.09
21 II Molto vivace 2.34
22 III Lento — Andante mosso — Allegretto 5.43
Alissa Margulis violin | Natalia Margulis cello | Jura Margulis piano

Béla Bartók 1881–1945
23 Romanian Folk Dances, Sz.56 (arr. Zoltán Székely for violin and piano) 6.24
Géza Hosszu-Legocky violin | Martha Argerich piano

Claude Debussy 1862–1918
En blanc et noir
24 I Avec emportement 3.59
25 II Lent — Sombre 6.57
26 III Scherzando 4.08
Martha Argerich piano | Stephen Kovacevich piano

Luis Bacalov b.1933
Porteña (Latitud 34°36’30”) for 2 pianos and orchestra
27 I Porteña 3.23
28 II Nocturnal 1.15
29 III Cadenza 0.15
30 IV Porteña (quasi jidish) 3.13
31 V Secuencia (quasi) canónica 0.53
32 VI Gardeliana 2.20
33 VII Malandra 1.59
34 VIII Tanghora 2.12
35 IX Bajofondo 1.11
36 X Corrientes y 9 de julio 4.54
37 XI Finale 0.44
Martha Argerich piano | Eduardo Hubert piano | Orchestra della Svizzera italiana | Alexander Vedernikov

Francis Poulenc 1899–1963
Sonata for 2 pianos
38 I Prologue: Extrêmement lent et calme 5.12
39 II Allegro molto — Très rythmé 4.46
40 III Andante lyrico — Lentement 5.48
41 IV Épilogue: Allegro giocoso 4.16
Sergio Tiempo piano | Karin Lechner piano

Philip Glass b.1937
Suite from Les enfants terribles (arr. for 3 pianos)
42 I Overture 3.10
43 II The Somnambulist 3.26
44 III She Took the Path 1.54
45 IV Paul’s End 3.33

Alberto Ginastera 1916–1983
Dances from Estancia, Op.8a (transcr. C.M. Griguoli for 3 pianos)
46 I Los Trabajadores Agrícolas 2.37
47 II Danza del Trigo 2.38
48 III Los Peones de Hacienda 1.38
49 IV Danza final (Malambo) 3.10
Giorgia Tomassi piano | Carlo Maria Griguoli piano | Alessandro Stella piano

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