Die Trauergondel – La lugubre gondola II, S200/2 (Liszt) - from CDA68202 - Hyperion Records

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Reviews

‘Tiberghien is once again consummately subtle, and he misses no opportunity for virtuoso display where the opportunity arises—as in the Bagatelle sans tonalité … and the fourth Mephisto Waltz. Generously filled and beautifully recorded, this disc offers a fine entry point for anyone either dipping into late Liszt for the first time or giving it another try’ (Gramophone)

‘Tiberghien’s quasi-improvisatory approach works marvellously with works which would otherwise risk sounding directionless and self-indulgent. His range is breathtaking, carefully terraced even in the thickest of textures, never harsh, abrupt, metronomic or bombastic, even when rumbling in the murkiest depths of the piano’s range’ (BBC Music Magazine)

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‘I confess I hadn’t previously thought of the French pianist Cédric Tiberghien as a Lisztian, but I do now … Tiberghien evokes the play of the waters within Liszt’s virtuosic writing with impressive economy. Throughout this recital you’re never aware of the technical difficulties or display for its own sake; the music and the colours come first, especially impressive in the strangely unsettling world of the ‘Bagatelle without tonality’ that opens the recital, and in Tiberghien’s desolate depiction of a Venetian funeral gondola. Seriously classy Liszt, encompassed by a recording that allows every detail of Tiberghien’s playing to resonate’ (BBC Record Review)

‘Tiberghien never flaunts his total command of those challenges and with an exemplary range of touch and keyboard colour, concentrates instead on these pieces purely as musical statements … Tiberghien presents all of them as perfectly conceived miniatures that often pose more questions than they answer’ (The Guardian)» More

‘This Liszt recital merely confirms my recent impression of Tiberghien’s credentials in this music … [in Sursum corda] Tiberghien must execute any number of pedal points on E, moving in vaulting gestures into fff declamations written over four staves to ensure their ‘symphonic,’ grandioso effect … the production team of Simon Eadon and Andrew Keener deserves special mention for this recording, faithful to Liszt’s—and Tiberghien’s—keyboard in every way’ (Audiophile Audition, USA)

‘Tiberghien is an expert guide. He is a sensitive and fastidious player who never forces his tone and is discreet with his use of the sustaining pedal. He can also bring out massive climaxes when required—he also plays Brahms. He shapes and moulds the sometimes bald and bleak writing, which is at times in just single notes, and takes us into the heart of the world of late Liszt. There is nothing routine about his playing. This is a most impressive recital … I cannot think of a better introduction to late Liszt. Very strongly recommended’ (MusicWeb International)» More

‘Late Liszt is a different world from that of the well-known virtuoso works. The subjects are sometimes religious, sometimes macabre, and they explore strange harmonic regions with an undertone of mystery and terror. Tiberghien is an expert guide to this territory and he moulds and shapes the sometimes forbiddingly bare writing as well as rising to massive climaxes when required. The recording is superb’ (MusicWeb International)

‘Tiberghien's execution and control are impeccable, and his interpretations are fluid and wholly at the service of Liszt's changeable expressions … Hyperion's sound is clear and well-balanced, with the right amount of brilliance in the loudest passages and atmosphere in the softest. Highly recommended’ (AllMusic, USA)» More

‘This superb Hyperion issue is Cédric Tiberghien’s first foray into Liszt, and he has gone in at the deep end … the recording makes clear the consistency of Tiberghien’s control of focus and tonal range, but it is more the ease with which he gets beneath the surface of these troubled, elusive pieces that makes its mark with a strong illusion of improvisatory directness … this release is as much to do with Tiberghien’s marvellous playing as with his acutely tuned intelligence and artistry—this really is music from the edge’ (Classical Source)» More

‘Tiberghien’s playing in these late works may be the most beautiful you have ever heard’ (The Whole Note, Canada)» More

«De son Yamaha (« l'un des plus fins instruments que j'aie joué »), Cédric Tiberghien tire des sonorités d'une grande variété, sans chercher à rendre cette musique plus aimable qu'elle ne l'est—Sunt lacrymae rerum et les deux Cyprès baignent dans une humeur auprès de laquelle l'ébène serait couleur de rose … le large ambitus dynamique fait de Sursum corda une apothéose qui est aussi libération» (Classica, France)» More

„Tiberghiens technisch herausragendes, auf einem Yamaha-Flügel sehr klar formuliertes, sensibles und oft meditatives Spiel, seine Farbmischungen, sein wunderbares Nuancieren, als das macht aus dieser Aufnahme etwas ganz Besonderes, zumal weil jedes Gefühl echt und tief empfunden wirkt und nicht sentimental aufgesetzt. So zeigt er deutlich, wie sich Liszts Musik in den ‘Années de pèlerinage 3’ deutlich in eine Richtung bewegt, an die Debussy und Ravel anknüpfen sollten. Kein Zweifel also: Tiberghien legt mit dieser Einspielung ein ungemein kohärentes und wunderbar interpretiertes Liszt-Programm vor“ (Pizzicato, Luxembourg)

„Die Wasserspiele der Villa d'Este, ein Angelus-Läuten und die Trauergondel … dem Spätwerk von Franz Liszt versteht sich derzeit wohl kaum ein Pianist so betörend empfindsam zu nähern wie Cédric Tiberghien“ (NDR Kultur, Germany)

„Die Klarheit von Tiberghiens Spiel schärft den Blick für die Tief- und Abgründigkeit dieser Musik, ohne deren rätselhafte Schönheit außer Acht zu lassen—ein wichtiger Beitrag zu einem komplexen Liszt Porträt“ (Fono Forum, Germany)

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„Der künstlerische Ernst, mit dem er einige dieser letzten Klavierwerke Liszts sowie den dritten Band der „L’Années de pèlerinage“ angeht, das feine Klangsensorium, das er für diese Musik entwickelt, überzeugt, ja begeistert in jedem Takt“ (Musik & Theater, Switzerland)

„Ein tolles Album!“ (Concerti, Germany)» More

The contemplative, internal musings characteristic of this period in Liszt’s life are vividly present in La lugubre gondola II. He stayed with his son-in-law Richard Wagner at the Palazzo Vendramin on the Grand Canal in Venice at the end of 1882 and became engrossed by the silent funeral processions passing along the canals by gondola. He subsequently admitted that he had had a premonition of Wagner’s death, an event which occurred just six weeks later in Venice. It affected him deeply and inspired four pieces: two versions of La lugubre gondola, RW – Venezia and Am Grabe Richard Wagners. One can easily imagine the wizened and disillusioned composer sitting at the piano in solitude in the fading evening light toying with these eerie thoughts. Like La lugubre gondola I, it reaches heights of desolation through harmonic disorientation and austere dissonances, devoid of any recognizable theme, rhythm or tonality.

Les rêveries internes contemplatives, caractéristiques de cette période de la vie de Liszt, sont présentes de façon très nette dans La lugubre gondola II. Il séjourna avec son gendre Richard Wagner au Palazzo Vendramin sur le Grand Canal, à Venise, à la fin de l’année 1882 et fut captivé par les processions funèbres silencieuses qui passaient sur les canaux en gondole. Il admit par la suite qu’il avait eu une prémonition de la mort de Wagner, qui survint six semaines plus tard à Venise. Elle l’affecta profondément et lui inspira quatre pièces: deux versions de La lugubre gondola, RW – Venezia et Am Grabe Richard Wagners. On peut facilement s’imaginer le compositeur ratatiné et désabusé assis à son piano, seul, dans la pénombre du soir avec ces pensées sinistres. Comme La lugubre gondola I, elle parvient à des sommets de désolation par une désorientation harmonique et par des dissonances austères, sans le moindre thème, rythme ou tonalité reconnaissables.

extrait des notes rédigées par Jeremy Nicholas © 2019
Français: Marie-Stella Pâris

Der Rückzug in Innerlichkeit und Kontemplation, der diese Lebensphase Liszts prägte, findet Ausdruck in La lugubre gondola II. Ende 1882 wohnte Liszt mit seinem Schwiegersohn Richard Wagner im Palazzo Vendramin am Canal Grande und war fasziniert von den stillen Leichenzügen, die auf Gondeln über die Kanäle fuhren. Später gestand er, er habe dabei eine Vorahnung vom Tod Richard Wagners erlebt, der sechs Wochen später tatsächlich in Venedig starb. Unter diesem tiefen Eindruck entstanden vier Stücke: die zwei Fassungen von La lugubre gondola, RW – Venezia und Am Grabe Richard Wagners. Es fällt nicht schwer, sich vorzustellen, wie der ergraute, desillusionierte Komponist in der Abenddämmerung einsam am Klavier düsteren Gedanken nachhängt. In diesem Stück, in dem weder ein Thema noch Rhythmus oder Tonart klare Gestalt annehmen, führen wie La lugubre gondola I richtungslose Harmonik und harte Dissonanzen in tiefe Trostlosigkeit.

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Recording details: December 2017
St Silas the Martyr, Kentish Town, London, United Kingdom
Produced by Andrew Keener
Engineered by Simon Eadon
Release date: February 2019
Total duration: 9 minutes 32 seconds

Cover artwork: Photograph by Nina Reistad.
Arcangel