Idil Biret wanted to record the many waltz transcriptions of Godowsky and others. Chief among these was the transcription of the Johann Strauss' waltz Kiinstlerleben by Godowsky which she had performed at many concerts in the l 970s and the Blue Danube Waltz. However, there was another project scheduled before that; four Haydn Sonatas, some of the most beautiful among the many he composed. When Idil suddenly fell ill in 2021 both projects were abandoned. Then, miraculously a stupendous recording of her performance of Kiinstlerleben in New York in December 1975 surfaced on the internet which led to reembarking on the project in a somewhat different way. The result is this CD, a compilation of Biret's past performances of Waltzes and Dances from many composers including Bartok, Berlioz, Chopin, Debussy, Liszt, Ravel, Stravinsky and, of course, Leopold Godowsky - his piano transcription of the Strauss waltz Kiinstlerleben "Metamorphosis on Themes from Artist's Life"

Tracklist:

Tarantelle
Symph. Fantastique~A Ball
Venezia et Napoli~Tarantella
valse
plus que lente
Liebesleid
Valse pour les enfants
Petrouchka~Danse Russe
6 Roumanian Folk Dances
6 Dances in Bulgarian Rhythm
Pieces Sentimentales
KÃ¼nstlerleben

UPC: 747313142873
Label: Naxos
Release Date: 9.13.24
Format: CD

Bartok / Berlioz / Chopin / Biret - Idil Biret Archive Edition, Vol. 21 - Waltzes (CD)