Brahms: Piano Works Alexandre Kantorow

• Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897): 4 Ballades, Op. 10:
• 1 Brahms: 4 Ballades, Op. 10: No. 1, Andante - Poco più moto - Allegro 05:38
• 2 Brahms: 4 Ballades, Op. 10: No. 2, Andante - Allegro non troppo 06:50
• 3 Brahms: 4 Ballades, Op. 10: No. 3, Intermezzo 04:42
• 4 Brahms: 4 Ballades, Op. 10: No. 4, Andante con moto - Più lento 08:15
• Piano Sonata No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 5:
• 5 Brahms: Piano Sonata No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 5: I. Allegro maestoso 12:05
• 6 Brahms: Piano Sonata No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 5: II. Andante espressivo 11:20
• 7 Brahms: Piano Sonata No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 5: III. Scherzo 05:08
• 8 Brahms: Piano Sonata No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 5: IV. Intermezzo (Rückblick) 03:43
• 9 Brahms: Piano Sonata No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 5: V. Finale 08:13
• 5 Studies, Anh. 1a No. 1:
• 10 Brahms: 5 Studies, Anh. 1a No. 1: No. 5, Chaconne von J.S. Bach (After J.S. Bach's BWV 1004) 17:45
• Total Runtime 01:23:39

Info for Brahms: Piano Works

In 2019, when Alexandre Kantorow, at the age of 22, became the first French pianist to win the Gold Medal at the Tchaikovsky competition, his programme included no less than three works by Johannes Brahms. Two of these, Piano Sonata No. 2 and the Rhapsody in B minor, he went on to record for release on his previous, highly praised recital disc, which was awarded distinctions such as Gramophone’s Editor’s Choice, Diapason d’Or, and Choc de Classica. The Brahms interpretations won Kantorow particular praise – the Guardian (UK) described them as ‘magisterial’ while the website ResMusica placed his sonata ‘among the great reference recordings of the piece – if not the modern one.’

There is much to look forward to, then, when Kantorow releases an all-Brahms album with a playing time of no less than 85 minutes. He opens with music by a composer of a similar age as himself: Brahms wrote the Four Ballades in 1854 while only 21 years old, taking up a fashionable genre introduced by Chopin as late as 1840. The set is followed by the even earlier Sonata No. 3 in E minor which forms the centre of the programme. The sonata is of almost symphonic dimensions and it was indeed, along with its predecessors, famously described as a disguised symphony by no one less than Robert Schumann. To bring this stormy, impassioned album to a close, Kantorow has chosen a later, and contrasting work: With a lifelong admiration for Bach, Brahms in 1879 made a piano arrangement, for the left hand alone, of the iconic Chaconne from Partita No. 2 for solo violin – a composition that Brahms himself described as ‘a whole world of the deepest thoughts and most powerful impressions’.

Alexandre Kantorow, piano

Alexandre Kantorow
Having brought out his first CD last year to critical acclaim, Alexandre has released his second, on the BIS label, that onsist of three of Liszt’s piano concertos, recorded in Finland with the Tapiola Sinfonietta under his father, conductor Jean-Jacques Kantorow.

Alexandre has been performing these concertos live as part of his international concert schedule, taking in Osaka, Japan, under Augustin Dumay, and Taipei, Taiwan. He’ll also be playing other pieces by Liszt nearer to home, on tour with the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire.

France gets a new concert hall this year, in the form of the much anticipated Philharmonie de Paris, and Alexandre has performed Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy there as part of the inaugural season.

Brahms is another of Alexandre’s favourite composers, and he is looking forward to performing his Piano Concerto No. 2 early in the year.

Born in Paris in 1997, Alexandre fits his many professional engagements around his studies at the Paris Conservatoire, under Franck Braley. A full-time career as a soloist beckons, but Alexandre still enjoys performing with other musicians too. LAst summer, for example, he’ll be playing chamber music at festivals in France, as well as performing Addinsell’s film music the Warsaw Concerto, and Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue in its original version with jazz band.

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