Busoni: Fantasia contrappuntistica; Chopin Variations; Sonatina prima; Sonatina seconda in Bloomington, MN

There seems to be a certain vogue for the music of
Ferruccio Busoni
, with several recordings even of the difficult
Fantasia contrappuntistica
appearing in the early and middle 2020s. It may be that listeners are attracted by music that fits neither into modernist nor into Romantic categories. Be that as it may, this recording by pianist
Peter Donohoe
, assisted on the
by
Karl Lutchmayer
(he also plays one Sonatina), makes a good, accessible place to start with
Busoni
.
Donohoe
opens with the Toccata and Fugue in D minor, somewhere between an expansion of and a free fantasy on
Bach
's famed
Toccata and Fugue, BWV 565
, and offers a
-derived
Prelude and Fugue
for good measure. After those comes a
Variations and Fugue in Free Form
and a pair of Sonatinas. These works gradually develop into some pretty arcane territory, but they remain rooted in Baroque textures, and
's sober performances catch that linkage.
's ultimate apotheosis of Baroque style is the
, heard here in its grand two-piano version by the composer. With the final pages of
's final work,
The Art of the Fugue, BWV 1080
, as a starting point,
constructs a polyphonic edifice for the ages.
and
Lutchmayer
offer a reading with some flair, avoiding forbidding edges, although the work is plenty virtuosic in its later stages.
is well known as a performer and lecturer on
but hasn't recorded much, and for some listeners, the chance to hear him will be a major attraction here. Fine sound from the Wyastone Concert Hall in the hands of
Chandos
engineers is one plus, and a nifty caricature of
in the graphics is another. This album made classical best-seller lists in early 2025. ~ James Manheim