Leos Janacek (1854-1928) is not known for his piano music. The extraordinary operas he wrote in the last half of his career, the Sinfonietta and Taras Bulba have established his reputation as one of the greatest Czech composers. Part of the reason for the neglect of his keyboard output is its sparsity, of course; too, Czech composers, unlike their counterparts in Germany and Russia, have never established a tradition in this corner of the repertory. Thus their productions have failed to attract most pianists, who, it must ...
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Leos Janacek (1854-1928) is not known for his piano music. The extraordinary operas he wrote in the last half of his career, the Sinfonietta and Taras Bulba have established his reputation as one of the greatest Czech composers. Part of the reason for the neglect of his keyboard output is its sparsity, of course; too, Czech composers, unlike their counterparts in Germany and Russia, have never established a tradition in this corner of the repertory. Thus their productions have failed to attract most pianists, who, it must be observed, are reluctant to explore the environs beyond the beaten path. But most of Janacek's piano compositions are worthwhile and fully deserve greater attention.Variations for Zdenka, an early Brahms-flavored work, is charming, the perfect piece to stump friends with in a "guess the composer" quiz. It offers an attractive, stately theme with seven innovative variations. A Recollection is an interesting short work, somewhat impressionistic, with Debussy coming to mind in some of...
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