Vlado Perlemuter (pianoforte)

Mephisto Waltz

Waldesrauschen Mazeppa

Liszt is still under the cloud that has for so long obscured the more important side of his genius. He is paying dearly for his historical and world-wide popularity as a virtuoso, for he was the greatest of all pianists. Because most great pianists, violinists, and conductors have been poor composers, Liszt is assumed to be no better than the rest. As it happens, Liszt is one of the few exceptions, despite the fact that he wrote a large amount of music that is little more than showy and effective concert material.

Unfortunately, Liszt is known to most people, even musicians, only by his show pieces, and the real Liszt as characterised by the setting of Psalm XIII, the 'Faust' Symphony, and the 'Mephisto Waltz' in which genuine poetic ideas and masterly craftsmanship meet on equal terms, is neglected. Here is an opportunity to hear some of Liszt's more ambitious creative efforts.