My interest in C. G. Neefe, Beethoven's first important and influential teacher in his home city of Bonn, Germany, arose from my earlier research into the music of Beethoven's two composition students, Archduke Rudolph and Ferdinand Ries. A new modern edition of the keyboard sonatas allowed me to study them and from that came the determination to record them. These sonatas are an important link between the styles of the Baroque and Early Classical periods, and in addition, round out the picture of Beethoven as student as well as teacher. The inclusion of Beethoven's "Dressler" Variations, his first published composition written at the age of 12 under Neefe's tutelage, seemed an appropriate addition to the recording. – Susan Kagan

"Kagan's performance is simply marvellous ... she plays with sophistication, expression, and humour." –Music Web International

Mainly remembered today as Beethoven's first main teacher and mentor in Bonn, Christian Gottlob Neefe was a respected Court Organist and Kapellmeister in his day. His own compositional output is now hardly known, and only his four-handed variations on Mozart's Die Zauberflöte (8.572519-20) might be considered current instrumental repertoire.

Neefe's Complete Piano Sonatas represent a vital link between the Baroque of the Bach family, the rise of the Empfindsamer Stil, and the establishment of the Classical period, and they are fascinating works in their own right.  These Twelve Sonatas represent important steps in this transition, each having a uniquely individual character and showing a mixture of styles. The Dressler Variations was young Ludwig's first published composition, and this set unites teacher and pupil as well as filling a serious gap in recorded keyboard music.

Susan Kagan's Naxos recordings of Beethoven's student Ferdinand Ries's complete Piano Sonatas and Sonatinas have been described as 'rock solid' (Gramophone) and 'a voyage of discovery that guarantees to delight and fascinate' (Fanfare).

CD 1 Twelve Sonatas (1773), Nos. 1 - 7

Sonata I in D minor 10:43
1 Allegro con spirito 03:50
2 Poco adagio 03:58
3 Allegretto 02:55

Sonata II in D major 06:44
4 Allegretto grazioso 04:03
5 Tempo di Minuetto 02:41

Sonata III in G major 09:25
6 Vivace 04:04
7 Andante con tenerezza 02:56
8 Allegro assai 02:25

Sonata IV in C minor 07:36
9 Allegro 03:39
10 Andante con gusto 01:33
11 Presto 02:24

Sonata V in C major 11:28
12 Allegro moderato 05:41
13 Largo e mesto 04:04
14 Allegro e scherzando 01:43

Sonata VI in F major 11:03
15 Poco lento e languido 08:00
16 Tempo di Minuetto 03:03

Sonata VII in B flat major 11:35
17 Allegro 04:43
18 Arioso ed un poco sostenuto 03:05
19 Molto presto 03:47

TOTAL TIME: 68:44

CD 2 TWELVE SONATAS (1773), NOS. 8 - 12

SONATA VIII IN E FLAT MAJOR 09:56
1 Allegretto e cantabile 04:58
2 Poco largo 02:59
3 Presto 01:58

SONATA IX IN C MINOR 08:58
4 Moderato 04:24
5 Minuetto 03:01
6 Polacca 01:33

SONATA X IN C MAJOR 06:30
7 Con gusto 03:40
8 Minuetto 01:20
9 Rondeau 01:30

SONATA XI IN D MAJOR 08:03
10 Allegro con spirito 03:21
11 Andante con gravità 02:12
12 Minuetto 02:30

SONATA XII IN A MAJOR 08:56
13 Tempo giusto 02:53
14 Minuetto 03:58
15 Alla polacca 02:05

16 NINE VARIATIONS FOR KEYBOARD ON A MARCH BY ERNST CHRISTOPH DRESSLER, WoO 63 15:37

TOTAL TIME: 58:06

Susan Kagan, a pianist, author, and educator, has explored the music of composers associated with Beethoven and his milieu. She holds a Ph.D from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York; her dissertation on the music of Archduke Rudolph, Beethoven's composition student for more than two decades, was published by Pendragon Press in 1988 (The Music of Archduke Rudolph, Beethoven's Patron, Pupil, and Friend.). She has recorded several of his works on the Koch International label. Her discography includes three CDs in partnership with the renowned violinist Josef Suk (Koch), two sets of Mozart piano concertos with the Suk Chamber Orchestra of Prague (Vox and Koch Discover), and the complete solo piano sonatas and sonatinas on five CDs (Naxos 8.570796, 8.570743, 8.572204, 8.572299, 8.572300). She recently retired from the faculty of Hunter College, where she taught music history and founded the New York Chapter of the American Beethoven Society. In 2007 she received the Ira F. Brilliant Lifetime Achievement Award for Beethoven Performance and Studies from the American Beethoven Society. She is active as a reviewer of new CDs for Fanfare Magazine, and serves on the Advisory Boards of the American Beethoven Society and the Schubert Society of the United States.

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"Kagan's performance is simply marvellous . . . she plays with sophistication, expression, and humour." – Music Web International