BRAHMS: Brahms "The Progressive" (Piano Works) - Matteo Fossi, piano

In 1933, Arnold Schönberg defined ‘Brahms the Progressive’ as the initiator of a free language: ‘He was a great innovator in the area of musical language.’ This disc covers the composer’s entire life, starting with the Variations op. 9, composed at the age of just 20 years, then touching the middle period of his production with the Rhapsodies, and finishing with compositions which constitute his farewell to the piano: the Fantaisies and the Klavierstücke, written when he was in his sixties. The feature common to these piano compositions is their characteristic musical language and their Brahmsian power, which is recognised in the first notes of his youthful compositions and is still found, unambiguously, in the intimacy of his last works.

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
     Variations on a theme by Schumann op. 9     
1.    Theme. Variations I - XVI    17'47
     Two Rhapsodies op. 79     
2.    Rhapsody op. 79 n°1 : Aditato (in B minor)    9'51
3.    Rhapsody op. 79 n°2 : Molto passionato ma non troppo allegro (in G minor)    6'43
     Seven Fantasias op. 116     
4.    Capriccio : Presto energico (in D minor)    2'34
5.    Intermezzo : Andante (in A minor)    3'26
6.    Capriccio : Allegro passionato (in G minor)    3'20
7.    Intermezzo : Adagio (in E major)    4'13
8.    Intermezzo : Andante con grazia ed intimissimo sentimento (in E minor)    2'50
10.    Cappriccio : Allegro agitato (in D minor)    2'18
     Four Pieces (Klavierstücke) op. 119     
11.    Intermezzo : Adagio (in B minor)    3'29
12.    Intermezzo : Andantino (in B minor)    4'53
13.    Intermezzo : Grazioso e giocoso (in C major)    1'44
14.    Rhapsody : Allegro risoluto (in E flat major)    5'31