Albumblatt 2, BV 289
Sonatina ad usum Infantis Madeline M. Americane, No. 3, BV 268
Sonatina brevis in Signo Joannis Sebastiani Magni, No. 5, BV 280
Sonatina in diem nativitatis Christi MCMXVII, No. 4, BV 274
Sonatina super Carmen, No. 6, BV 284
Albumblatt I, BV 289
Sonatina, No. 1, BV 257
Albumblatt 3, BV 289
Nuit de Noel, BV 251
Sonatina seconda, No. 2, BV 259
Sonatina quasi Sonata - Fragment
Victor Nicoara - Quasi Sonata;

Ferruccio Busoni was born in 1866 in the Tuscan city of Empoli. His precocious musical abilities became apparent following an early education by his pianist mother. Later he received teaching positions in Moscow, Boston and Helsinki - the latter of which had a particular significance as it was there that he met his wife Gerda. It was, however, after he moved to Berlin in 1894 that his reputation as a pianistic titan was cemented. Tragically, ill health caught up with him and he passed away in 1924.

It is the present works that best encapsulate his qualities. Composed between 1910 and 1920, the six Sonatinas - the most substantial genre set in Busoni’s late oeuvre – span over a decade of experimentation and synthesis. They are bookended by Nuit de Noël (1908) and the Albumblätter (completed in 1921) in both style and ritual.

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Recording: Meistersaal Berlin, 09, 10 & 11.03.2019.