JOACHIM RAFF (1822-1882)

Piano WoRKS • 6

TRA NGUYEN, piano

“Raff's Piano Works vol.6 takes us across his piano oeuvre, mixing early works and more mature compositions like Fantasy op.142 and Memories of Venice op.187. These are works of great emotional density where Raff fused his supreme melodic skill with complex harmonic and contrapuntal structure. For me, Thomas Mann's Venice it may not be but Guardi's dramatic and richly colourful Rialto Bridge consistently links and sums up the beauty of Raff's writings in this volume.” - Tra Nguyen

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JOACHIM RAFF
(1822-1882)

About this Recording

Each piece on the sixth and final volume of this series demonstrates different aspects of Raff’s genius as a composer for the piano. The melodic richness of the early Six Poèmes, dedicated to Liszt who had rescued Raff from penury, contrasts with the deftly evocative scene-setting of Erinnerung an Venedig, which recalls a holiday in Venice. The intensely lyrical Fantaisie is complemented by the languid charm of the Barcarolle, and the recording closes with a virtuosic Valse brillante.

Erinnerung an Venedig, Op . 187

1

No. 1. Gondoliera: Allegretto (03:20)

2

No. 2. Am Rialto: Allegro con spirito (03:47)

3

No. 3. Canzone: Allegretto (04:09)

4

No. 4. Zur Taubenfütterung: Capricietto. Allegretto
(03:09)

5

No. 5. Serenade: Allegretto (03:59)

6

No. 6. Venetienne: Allegro (03:59)

7
Barcarolle, Op . 143 (07:13)

6 POEMES , Op . 15

8

No. 1. Passion calmé: Andantino – Allegretto non
troppo vivo – Tempo primo – Presto giojoso (05:51)

9

No. 2. De loin: Andante quasi larghetto (03:28)

10

No. 3. Les amoureux. Scherzo a due: Allegretto quasi
allegro – Quasi andante (Cadenza) – Tempo I (04:33)

11

No. 4. La larme: Quasi larghetto (02:46)

12

No. 5. Chanson suisse: Andante (04:02)

13

No. 6. Gigue: Presto – A tempo – Più mosso (03:09)

14
Fantaisie, Op . 142 (13:01)

2 Pieces , Op . 169

15

No. 1. Romance: Quasi adagio (06:44)

16

No. 2. Valse brillante: Allegro (05:18)

WORLD PREMIÈRE RECORDINGS

TOTAL TIME: 78:24

Listen to an excerpt from Barcarolle, Op. 143

TRA NGUYEN

British-Vietnamese Tra Nguyen gave her first concert, performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto, K488, with the Hanoi Conservatory Orchestra. Since then she has continued to engage audiences in other important venues worldwide. Recent and future performances include Queen Elizabeth Hall, Tokyo Opera City, Hong Kong City Recital Hall, Cadogan Hall and Wigmore Hall amongst others. Her imaginative programming balances core repertoire and lesser-known music, winning critical praise. Her discography introduces many world première recordings of neglected music. Volumes 1-5 of her recordings of Joachim Raff’s piano music have earned wide critical acclaim, including Album of the Week awards by The Independent. Tra Nguyen studied with Lev Naumov at the Moscow Conservatory and with Christopher Elton at the Royal Academy of Music where she received the Academy’s highest award for her final recital. She was awarded the ARAM (Associate of the Royal Academy of Music) for her “significant contribution to the music profession” in 2013.

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