The piano quintets by Georgy Catoire and Ignaz Friedman on this album were both written in the 1910s and are considered interesting examples of works bridging post-romanticism and modernism.
Composer Biography
Georgy Catoire received encouragement from Tchaikovsky, who wrote: 'this time I have come across someone who possesses genuine creative talent'.
Composer Biography
Ignaz Friedman is primarily famous as one of the greatest pianists of the twentieth century, admired by Rachmaninov and considered superior by Vladimir Horowitz.
Instruments
The instruments used in this recording include a 1709 Antonius Stradivarius violin, a 1788 Januarius Gaglian violin, a 1714 Dom Nicolò Amati viola, and a 1707 'Boni-Hegar' Stradivarius cello.
Composer Biography
Georgy Catoire, born in Moscow in 1861, studied piano with Liszt's pupil Carl Klindworth, who introduced him to Wagner's music at a time when German music was not highly regarded in Moscow.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Georgy Catoire's music is difficult to categorize; it is profoundly individual and does not manifest the typical Russian traits of his contemporaries' works.
Composition History
Ignaz Friedman's Piano Quintet in C minor (1918) is considered his finest piece and may have been inspired by the death of his father, with a theme derived from Polish folk music as a tribute.
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