Godowsky: Strauss transcriptions & other waltzes

Marc-André Hamelin’s programme is mostly devoted to Godowsky’s works based on themes by—or directly inspired by—Johann Strauss II. It is not intended to be a comprehensive survey but is, nevertheless, fully representative of Godowsky’s finest reflections on the Waltz King. In the three great Strauss transcriptions, Godowsky elevated the art of the piano paraphrase to a higher musical and pianistic plane; however their extreme technical difficulty remains a striking feature and places them out of the reach of ordinary pianists. And Marc-André Hamelin is, of course, no ordinary pianist—in fact his playing on a recent disc was compared to that of Alkan and Liszt.

Triakontameron and Walzermasken are rarely performed examples of Godowsky’s original work, and continue the composer’s love-affair with the waltz—they are written entirely in 3/4 time.

The last work on this dazzling disc is an oddity—indeed, a rarity. Sometime prior to 1925, Godowsky made a piano roll of his arrangement of The Last Waltz by Oscar Straus (1870–1954), the Vienna-born composer. The eponymous Waltz is heard throughout the 1920 operetta. The music of Godowsky’s transcription was never published for some unknown reason—it is a uniquely appealing arrangement. In the early 1970s, Gilles Hamelin, the pianophile father of Marc-André, notated, arranged and edited The Last Waltz from Godowsky’s piano roll, which was then published in 1975. Shortly afterwards, a copy of the negative of Godowsky’s manuscript was sent to Gilles Hamelin. It was all but illegible, so Hamelin Snr. made a fair copy in his own hand: in almost every respect it tallied with the version he had transcribed from the piano roll.

CDA67626  68 minutes 43 seconds
GRAMOPHONE EDITOR'S CHOICE
DIAPASON D'OR
‘Cultured musicianship, extraordinary keyboard proficiency and unflappable tonal control … Hamelin is a seasoned and subtle orchestrator at the piano … some of Hamelin's most poetic, lyrical ...
‘There's no need for analogies about a surfeit of Viennese cream cakes with this excellent CD: the musical invention is so brilliant and varied, and the performance so coruscating, that one's attentio ...
‘This latest marvel from Marc-André Hamelin explores Leopold Godowsky's relationship with the Viennese waltz … these pieces are more than just for show, and Hamelin brings out their poetic intent ...