Bortkiewicz: Piano Music

Featuring

Stephen Coombs
Sergei Bortkiewicz

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Critical Reception

The Ballade, Op. 42, and Élégie, Op. 46, almost quote Rachmaninov's second Piano Concerto, which critics used to label Bortkiewicz's music as derivative, despite Rachmaninov's work being largely unknown at the time.

Historical Context

A substantial portion of Bortkiewicz's published works was lost during the destruction of the Second World War, leading to his memory fading as his remaining works became difficult to obtain.

Composer Biography

Bortkiewicz initially studied law at university to please his father, but found the subject uncharming and eventually abandoned it for military service and continued conservatory studies.

Compositional Technique

Bortkiewicz demonstrated mastery of writing for the left hand alone in his Épithalame, Op. 65, and previously in his second Piano Concerto, Op. 28.

Composer Biography

Bortkiewicz's memoirs, written in 1936, only cover his life up to his arrival in Vienna in 1922, leaving much of his later life and career undocumented.

Composer Biography

Sergei Bortkiewicz, the composer, was born in Kharkov, Ukraine, in 1877, and his musical training mirrored that of many contemporaries, starting with piano studies at the Kharkov Music School.

Composition History

The Quatre Morceaux, Op. 3, Bortkiewicz's earliest surviving published works, were dedicated to influential figures in his early career, including his teacher Alfred Reisenauer and his mother, Sophie Bortkiewicz.