简介:
Schumann: Piano Works – Paolo Giacometti
Channel Classics CCS SA 28709
Stereo/Multichannel Hybrid
Classical – Instrumental
Robert SCHUMANN:
Davidsbündlertänze,Op.6
Arabeske,Op.18
Gesänge Der Frühe,Op.133
Paolo Giacometti (piano)
By late summer of 1837, the 27-year-old Schumann was secretly engaged to his beloved Clara Wieck. The powerful emotions connected with this event were a stimulus to Schumann’s creative impulses, for he was a Romantic through and through. It was at this time that he composed the deeply personal Davidsbundlertanze -18 dances inspired by the imaginary league of David. This fellowship, invented by Schumann, consisted of Schumann’s own alter egos, plus a number of well-respected musicians and friends including Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy. The group was established as a way of fighting against the Philistines; it was Schumann’s response to contemporary musical trends which he saw as cheap, excessively virtuosic, and superficial.
Two of the Davidsbundler, Schumann’s alter egos Florestan and Eusebius, occupy a central place in all of the composer’s works. Florestan, is extroverted, lively, and wild; Eusebius is intimate, gentle, and shy. The tensions between these two extremes also provides a narrative thread for the Davidsbundlertanze. Schumann placed the signature of one character or the other at the end of each of the eighteen dances; some are even signed by both characters. At the end of the cycle, the second dance, one of Eusebius’s melodies, returns, only to be cruelly interrupted by Florestan. But Eusebius, nevertheless, has the last word. Over the last dance, Schumann wrote Ganz zum berflu meinte Eusebius noch folgendes; dabei sprach aber viel Seligkeit au seinen Augen. [Eusebius expressed the following opinion, quite unnecessarily; but at the time, great happiness spoke from his eyes. In 1838, a year after the Davidsbundlertanze, Schumann composed the Arabeske. Peaceful, equable and timeless are words befitting this little composition, meant to be a delicate ornament. The Arabesque, as a musical form, was later used by other composers, such as Debussy and Reger, in an expression of admiration for Schumann.
Paolo Giacometti performs all over the world as a soloist and as a chamber musician, both on period and on modern instruments. Paolo Giacometti was born in Milan in 1970, but has been living in the Netherlands from his early childhood. He studied with Jan Wijn at the Sweelinck Conservatorium Amsterdam, where he graduated with the highest distinction. Also Gyorgy Sebk was an important source of inspiration and had a significant influence on his musical education. Paolo Giacometti has won many prizes at both national and international competitions. He has played with renowned orchestras under distinguished conductors such as Frans Brggen, Kenneth Montgomery, Laurent Petitgirard, Michael Tilkin and Jaap van Zweden. With Jaap van Zweden and the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra he recently performed Beethoven's first and third piano concertos during a successful tour in the United Kingdom.
Apart from his activities as a soloist, Paolo Giacometti's love for chamber music has resulted in a successful co-operation with leading musicians such as Pieter Wispelwey, Gordon Nikolich, Alois Brandhofer, Janine Jansen, Bart Schneemann and Emmy Verhey. He is also a member of the Cristofori Pianoquartet Amsterdam. Paolo Giacometti is a much sought-after musician at chamber music festivals in Europe, Canada and the United States. He has performed in concert halls all over the world including the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Teatro Colon (Buenos Aires), Wigmore Hall (London), Thtre du Chtelet (Paris) and Seoul Arts Centre (South Korea). Paolo Giacometti records exclusively for Channel Classics. His impressive discography has been widely acclaimed by the international press. His recordings include Rossini's complete piano works, a remarkable project that started in 1998. In Rossini's homeland, critics say: "... Rossini has finally found his pianist ...".
For the third recording of this series Paolo Giacometti was distinguished with the Edison Classical Music Award 2001. Paolo Giacometti's recording of Schumann's Humoreske, Fantasiestcke and Toccata has received the BBC Music Magazine's Benchmark and Performance of Outstanding Quality distinctions. His recording of the Dvorak and Schumann piano concertos have been acclaimed by Gramophone as "... one of the best concerto disks I have heard in a long while ...". Among his chamber music recordings, a recording with works by Schubert with cellist Pieter Wispelwey has received the Choc du Monde de la Musique and Luister 10 awards, while another recording with works by Chopin, Faur and Poulenc, also with Pieter Wispelwey, has been awarded the Diapason d'or. Paolo Giacometti is also a dedicated piano professor at the Utrecht Conservatory of Music.