Clementi / Chaplikov - Keyboard Sonatas 1 & 3 - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Muzio Clementi was born four years before Mozart and outlived Beethoven by the same span. His legacy to pianists as a composer and teacher was a significant one, introducing new virtuosity and exploring the expressive possibilities of the piano, a recently developed instrument. Clementi dedicated his youthful Op. 1 sonatas to his benefactor Peter Beckford, and the brilliant Sonata in F major, Op. 24, No. 1 is the partner work to Op. 24, No. 2 played in the famous contest between Clementi and Mozart. In her recording of Scarlatti's Keyboard Sonatas Soyeon Kate Lee 'applies her playful imagination to each one, polishing it into a unique gem.' (The Whole Note).

Muzio Clementi saw the piano evolve from relative fragility in the 18th century to it's dominance at the beginning of the Romantic era- his influence in developing the instrument's virtuosic possibilities cannot be overstated. These works embrace this progression, illustrating Clementi's earlier Classical style in the Sonata, Op. 1, No. 3, introducing more scintillating virtuosity in Op. 8, No. 2, and taking us to the dramatic final sonatas including Op. 50, No. 3, which narrates the story of Dido, Queen of Carthage. Sadro de Palma was born in Naples, and made his recital debut at the age of nine. At the age of sixteen, he made his debut recording of works by Liszt, and participated in the premiere recording of Clementi's Gradus ad Parnassum for Fonit Cetra- a recording which won the 20th Italian Critics Award. He has performed at prestigious venues and festivals around the world with some of the greatest artists and ensembles including Andrea Bocelli, Donato Renzetti, Yuri Temirkanov, Boris Belkin, and others.

Though Mozart was typically grudging, Beethoven had a high regard for Muzio Clementi's compositions. A leading soloist, Clementi was pivotal to the piano's development as a virtuoso instrument, but he was also a and innovator. His sonatas combine clarity of form with moments of bravura brilliance, laced with scintillating hand-crossings and his trademark chains of thirds, on which Mozart commented. Infectiously exciting in prestissimo sections, his sonatas offer a compendium of how to exploit new advances in the development of the piano. The works are interpreted here by award-winning pianist Sun-A Park.