Wolfram Schmitt-Leonardy's recordings have received critical acclaim, including five-star ratings from the German music magazine FonoForum and a 'Coup de Coeur' CD-prize from the French magazine PIANO.
Recording & Production
The recordings for this album were made in two different locations: the Concert Hall of the University of Music and Performing Arts, Munich, and Vereinshaus Fraulautern, Saarlouis, Germany.
Composition History
Chopin's three piano sonatas, along with Liszt's two, are considered 'lone wolves' in their composers' oeuvres, reflecting the challenges Romantic composers faced with the sonata genre.
Composer Biography
Chopin's first piano sonata, Op. 4, was composed when he was eighteen during his time at the Warsaw Conservatory, under the encouragement of his teacher, Józef Elsner.
Critical Reception
Chopin's piano sonatas were often criticized for their perceived lack of coherence, with Robert Schumann famously describing the B-flat minor sonata as "four of Chopin's wildest children strung together."
Instruments
Wolfram Schmitt-Leonardy performs these sonatas on a Steinway & Sons D piano, built in Hamburg, Germany, in 1969.
Performer Biography
Wolfram Schmitt-Leonardy, the pianist on this album, is a full-time Professor at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich and has won numerous top prizes in international piano competitions.
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