Godowsky: Complete Studies on Chopin’s Etudes – Marc-Andre Hamelin (2 CDs) Hyperion

Studies on Chopin’s Études[152’30]

CD1
1
No 1: C major: 1st version from Étude in C major, Op 10 No 1[2’11]
2
No 2: D flat major: 2nd version from Étude in C major, Op 10 No 1[2’41]
3
No 3: A minor: 1st version from Étude in A minor, Op 10 No 2[1’45]
4
No 4: A minor ‘Ignis fatuus’: 2nd version from Étude in A minor, Op 10 No 2[1’58]
5
No 5: D flat major: Étude in E major, Op 10 No 3[4’45]
6
No 6: C sharp minor: Étude in C sharp minor, Op 10 No 4[2’47]
7
No 7: G flat major: 1st version from Étude in G flat major, Op 10 No 5[1’40]
8
No 8: C major: 2nd version from Étude in G flat major, Op 10 No 5[1’49]
9
No 9: A minor ‘Tarantella’: 3rd version from Étude in G flat major, Op 10 No 5[2’28]
10
No 10: A major ‘Capriccio’: 4th version from Étude in G flat major, Op 10 No 5[2’09]
11
No 11: G flat major: 5th version from Étude in G flat major, Op 10 No 5[1’57]
12
No 12: G flat major: 6th version from Étude in G flat major, Op 10 No 5[1’49]
13
No 12a: G flat major. 7th version from Étude in G flat major, Op 10 No 5[2’19]
14
No 13: E flat minor: Étude in E flat minor, Op 10 No 6[3’43]
15
No 14: C major ‘Toccata’: 1st version from Étude in C major, Op 10 No 7[1’48]
16
No 15: G flat major ‘Nocturne’: 2nd version from Étude in C major, Op 10 No 7[2’54]
17
No 15a: E flat major. 3rd version from Étude in C major, Op 10 No 7[2’25]
18
No 16: F major: 1st version from Étude in F major, Op 10 No 8[3’13]
19
No 16a: G flat major. 2nd version from Étude in F major, Op 10 No 8[3’40]
20
No 17: C sharp minor: 1st version from Étude in F minor, Op 10 No 9[2’40]
21
No 18: F minor: 2nd version from Étude in F minor, Op 10 No 9[2’41]
22
No 18a: F sharp minor. 3rd version from Étude in F minor, Op 10 No 9[4’27]
23
No 19: D major: 1st version from Étude in A flat major, Op 10 No 10[3’55]
24
No 20: A flat major: 2nd version from Étude in A flat major, Op 10 No 10[3’14]
25
No 21: A major: Étude in E flat major, Op 10 No 11[3’22]
26
No 22: C sharp minor: Étude in C minor, Op 10 No 12[3’15]
27
No 23: A flat major: 1st version from Étude in A flat major, Op 25 No 1[3’03]
28
No 24: A flat major: 2nd version from Étude in A flat major, Op 25 No 1[3’02]
CD2
29
No 25: A flat major: 3rd version from Étude in A flat major, Op 25 No 1[2’45]
30
No 26: F minor: 1st version from Étude in F minor, Op 25 No 2[1’39]
31
No 27: F minor ‘Waltz’: 2nd version from Étude in F minor, Op 25 No 2[2’12]
32
No 28: F minor: 3rd version ‘version A’ from Étude in F minor, Op 25 No 2[2’38]
33
No 28: F minor: 3rd version ‘version B’ from Étude in F minor, Op 25 No 2[3’00]
34
No 28a: F sharp minor. 4th version from Étude in F minor, Op 25 No 2[2’40]
35
No 29: F major: 1st version from Étude in F major, Op 25 No 3[2’25]
36
No 30: F major: 2nd version from Éude in F major, Op 25 No 3[2’32]
37
No 31: A minor: 1st version from Étude in A minor, Op 25 No 4[2’22]
38
No 32: F minor ‘Polonaise’: 2nd version from Étude in A minor, Op 25 No 4[6’03]
39
No 33: E minor: 1st version from Étude in E minor, Op 25 No 5[3’47]
40
No 34: C sharp minor ‘Mazurka’: 2nd version from Étude in E minor, Op 25 No 5[3’36]
41
No 35: B flat minor: 3rd version from Étude in E minor, Op 25 No 5[4’25]
42
No 36: G sharp minor: Étude in G sharp minor, Op 25 No 6[2’12]
43
No 38: D flat major: Étude in D flat major, Op 25 No 8[1’29]
44
No 39: G flat major: 1st version from Étude in G flat major, Op 25 No 9[1’03]
45
No 40: G flat major: 2nd version from Étude in G flat major, Op 25 No 9[1’32]
46
No 41: B minor: Étude in B minor, Op 25 No 10[4’38]
47
No 42: A minor: Étude in A minor, Op 25 No 11[4’28]
48
No 43: C sharp minor: Étude in C minor, Op 25 No 12[3’21]
49
No 44: F minor: Nouvelle étude No 1 in F minor[1’49]
50
No 45: E major: 1st version from Nouvelle étude No 2 in A flat major[4’08]
51
No 45a: D flat major: 2nd version from Nouvelle étude No 2 in A flat major[2’10]
52
No 46: G major ‘Menuetto’: Nouvelle étude No 3 in D flat major[3’14]
53
No 47: G flat major ‘Badinage’: Études in G flat major, Op 10 No 5 and Op 25 No 9[1’34]
54
No 48: F major: Études in E flat major, Op 10 No 11 and F major, Op 25 No 3[3’08]

Godowsky’s Studies on Chopin’s Etudes have achieved a legendary status among piano enthusiasts. Few areas of the repertoire have such a notorious reputation for technical difficulty and audacious compositional invention. Far from being disrespectful maltreatments of Chopin’s masterpieces, Godowsky’s elaborations aim to extend the limits of modern piano technique. Some recast Chopin’s right-hand passagework for the left hand while introducing new contrapuntal ideas; some treat the originals more freely, inverting, imitating or combining two Etudes; others are character pieces or variations based on Chopin’s originals; and twenty-two of the Studies are for the left hand alone. Taken as a whole, these Studies revolutionized piano writing and expanded the polyphonic and polyrhythmic capabilities of the instrument. They remain among the most daunting challenges of the piano literature, their difficulties not always fully apparent to the listener.

Pianists brave enough to tackle this music have often been content merely to get through the notes. Marc-André Hamelin, renowned for his superhuman technical control, injects them with the required range of character, colour and musicianship, as well as breathtaking virtuosity. Uniquely available on 2CDs, this will surely be the benchmark recording for all time.

This set comes with a handsome booklet, including an essay by the Godowsky expert Jeremy Nicholas and individual commentaries by Marc-André Hamelin.