FLAC (tracks) | Classical | 63:13 | 1CD | 160 MbThe gate opens.

The music should sound solemn and magnificent, like an overture: majestic, like Beethoven’s Eroica.

That is how Hungarian composer György Ligeti begins Musica ricercata, one of his early works from the early 1950s.

In exemplary fashion, the cycle blends minimalist structures with a sumptuous array of colors.

Behind each note lurks the exigency that nothing should escape the pianist’s attention: he should be aware of all that takes place in the present, while remaining prepared for everything that can occur in the next moment.

Such challenges await the performer in Ligeti as well as in Beethoven.

Long before he thought of coupling the works by Beethoven and Ligeti on CD, Herbert Schuch had tried out the combination in the concert hall.

“I quickly get a feel whether a programme works well, or whether it’s just something I’ve conceived in my head.

Of course I was aware that these cycles were never intended to be picked apart.

I find it important to feel assured that I’m not undermining their essence, and that the new order also makes sense.

Such a coupling would certainly not work in the case of a sonata”.

Tracklist:1. Musica Ricercata: No. 1. Sostenuto – Misurato – Prestissimo (02:46)2. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 1. Allegretto (02:36)3. Musica Ricercata: No. 2. Mesto, rigidio e cerimoniale (03:15)4. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 2. Andante con moto (01:00)5. Musica Ricercata: No. 3. Allegro con spirito (01:02)6. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 3. “à l’Allemande” (01:43)7. Musica Ricercata: No. 4. Tempo di Valse (Poco vivace “à l’orgue de Barbarie”) (02:10)8. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 4. Andante cantabile (01:48)9. Musica Ricercata: No. 5. Rubato. Lamentoso (03:24)10. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 5. Risoluto (01:09)11. Musica Ricercata: No. 6. Allgreo molto capriccioso (00:49)12. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 6. Andante. Allegretto leggiermente (Leichtlich vorgetragen) (01:50)13. Musica Ricercata: No. 7. Cantabile, molto legato (03:45)14. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 7. Allegro ma non troppo (01:05)15. Musica Ricercata: No. 8. Vivace. Energico (00:53)16. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 8. Moderato cantabile (01:44)17. Musica Ricercata: No. 9. Adagio. Mesto – Allegro maestoso (in Memoriam Béla Bartók ) (02:58)18. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 9. Vivace moderato (00:34)19. Musica Ricercata: No. 10. Vivace. Capriccioso (01:19)20. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 10. Allegramente (00:17)21. Musica Ricercata: No. 11. Andante misurato e tranquillo (Ommagio a Girolamo Frescobaldi) (04:39)22. 11 Bagatelles, Op. 119: No. 11. Andante, ma non troppo (02:04)23. 6 Bagatelles, Op. 126: No. 1. Andante con moto. Cantabile e compiacevole (03:35)24. 6 Bagatelles, Op. 126: No. 2. Allegro (03:02)25. 6 Bagatelles, Op. 126: No. 3. Andante. Cantabile e graziso (02:40)26. 6 Bagatelles, Op. 126: No. 4. Presto (04:03)27. 6 Bagatelles, Op. 126: No. 5. Quasi Allegretto (02:51)28. 6 Bagatelles, Op. 126: No. 6. Presto. Andante amabile e con moto (04:12)