Gramophone Awards
2019
Finalist - Instrumental

Gramophone Magazine
November 2018

Presto Recording of the Week
5th October 2018

Igor Levit (piano)

Busoni: Fantasia nach J S Bach
Bach, J S: Partita for solo violin No. 2 in D minor, BWV1004: Chaconne
Schumann: Theme with Variations in E flat major WoO 24 ('Geistervariationen')
Rzewski: A Mensch (from Dreams)
Wagner: Parsifal: Solemn March (trans. Liszt)
Liszt: Fantasia and Fugue 'Ad nos, ad salutarem undam' (arr. Busoni)
Wagner: Mild und leise 'Isolde's Liebestod' (from Tristan und Isolde)
Busoni: Berceuse (1909) from Elegien
Evans, B: The Peace Piece

After a break of three years, Igor Levit presents a new & highly personal album - Including Bach’s Chaconne, Schumann’s Ghost Variations, Bill Evans’ Peace Piece and Wagner’s Liebestod... Hailed by The New York Times as “one of the essential artists of his generation”, Gilmore Artist Igor Levit releases a new album after 3 years. The new and highly personal album has been sparked by the tragic death of a close friend. Levit reflects at the keyboard on the experience of loss, hovering between grief and despair, resignation and solace. From JS Bach to Frederic Rzewski: ‘Life’ effortlessly crosses borders between eras, styles and genres, offering a multitude of new discoveries.

"The way Levit has formed this programme is extraordinarily effective. The Brahms reworking for left hand of Bach’s D minor violin Chaconne is a probing, introverted affair, and how effectively Levit can imbue a single line with light and shade...This is a fascinating, compelling set that demands to be heard." - Gramophone Magazine November 2018