Marcel Tadokoro, the pianist on this album, was born in Fukuoka, Japan, and studied at prestigious institutions in Paris, including the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse.
Composer Biography
Henselt's performing career was cut short due to severe stage fright, yet he is considered the founder of the Russian piano school, teaching Nikolay Sergeyevich Zverev, who later taught Rachmaninov and Scriabin.
Composer Biography
Adolf von Henselt, the composer, began learning violin at age three and piano at age five, studying with notable teachers like Johann Nepomuk Hummel.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Henselt aimed to write an étude in each key for his two books of études, choosing an unpredictable key pattern rather than a cycle of fifths, to give the overall cycle emotional depth.
Compositional Technique
The 12 Études caractéristiques, Op. 2, feature French descriptive titles for each étude, enhancing their programmatic nature, and often mask technical demands with poetic intent.
Composition History
Henselt's 'La Gondola' was part of a commission for the 'Méthode des méthodes', a substantial volume that also included contributions from Chopin, Liszt, and Felix Mendelssohn.
Composer Biography
Henselt developed a unique method for stretching and strengthening his hands to play wide chords without a sustain pedal, a technique he honed over two years of seclusion.
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