Leopold Godowsky's career as a performer ended in 1930 due to a stroke, after which he focused on his compositions and transcriptions for piano.
Composer Biography
Leopold Godowsky rejected an adoption offer from Camille Saint-Saëns, a distinguished French pianist and composer, because it required him to change his name.
Composition History
Leopold Godowsky's 'Three Concert Studies, Op. 11' included a dedication to Edward MacDowell, an American composer, without his permission, which MacDowell disliked.
Composer Biography
Leopold Godowsky, a Polish-American pianist, showed exceptional musical ability by age three and made his public debut as a pianist at age nine.
Compositional Technique
Leopold Godowsky's 'Suite for the left hand alone' is a modern take on the traditional French baroque dance suite, with two movements later arranged for two hands.
Compositional Technique
Leopold Godowsky's transcription of Richard Strauss's 'Ständchen' introduces the vocal melody in the left hand, within an intricate piano accompaniment.
Performer Biography
Konstantin Scherbakov, the pianist on this recording, was hailed as a 'modern Rachmaninov' at the Lucerne Festival and won the first Rachmaninov Competition in Moscow in 1983.
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