Haydn: Sonates et Variations pour le pianoforte

Badura-Skoda, Paul

A 352

Haydn's piano music continues to be overshadowed by his symphonies and string quartets and the contributions of Mozart and Beethoven. Paul Badura-Skoda has taken the 200th anniversary of Joseph Haydn's death as an opportunity to honour the composer with a personal selection of his piano works. In addition to rarely recorded works (including the remarkable Sonata in A flat major Hob. XVI: 46 with its extraordinary middle movement in D flat major), the programme includes better-known works such as the Andante con variazioni in F minor Hob. XVII: 6 and an arrangement of the Variations über Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser from the String Quartet Op. 76 No. 3. The doyen of the performance on historical fortepianos uses a grand piano by the Viennese piano maker Johann Schantz for his recording. Haydn held this man in much higher esteem than Anton Walter, who is much more popular today and was preferred by Mozart. In 1790, he advised his girlfriend Marianne von Genzinger on the purchase of a new fortepiano: "It is certain that H. Walther is very famous for my friend dermal, but among us, and quite sincerely, there is sometimes a single under-toe piano, as one can quite well call it, in addition to which it is extremely expensive On the other hand, he writes about Schantz in the same letter that he is "the best master in this field (...)" and "His forte piano has a very special lightness of touch and a pleasant tractament". Like Frau von Genzinger, Paul Badura-Skoda took Haydn's advice for this recording to heart.

CD x 1

Arcana

5/7/09

8033891690151