Liszt - Concerto No. 2 in A Major, S125; Hungarian Fantasia, S123

by Franz Liszt (Composer)

(Music Minus One). Performed by Neill Eisenstein, piano Stuttgart Symphony Orchestra Emil Kahn Liszt transformed the whole concept of the concerto when he cast his A-major concerto in one single movement using the idea of thematic transformation. A poetical masterpiece, both serene and glitteringly exciting, which stands at the very pinnacle of Romantic piano literature. Liszt used his own Hungarian Rhapsody No. 14 as the basis for the Hungarian Fantasia, the second piece featured on this MMO release. With its triumphal themes, sparkling cadenzas, and breathtaking finale, this single-movement mini-concerto is a sparkling musical gem! A wonderful, eminently accessible piece due to its relatively short length. Includes a high-quality printed music score and a compact disc containing a complete version with soloist, in split-channel stereo (soloist on the right channel); then a second version in full stereo of the orchestral accompaniment, minus the soloist.

94 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2006

About the author

Franz Liszt (1811, Doborján, Hungary - 1886, Bayreuth, Germany)(Hungarian: Ferencz Liszt, in modern usage Ferenc Liszt, from 1859 to 1865 officially Franz Ritter von Liszt) (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist and teacher. He was also the father-in-law of Richard Wagner.

Liszt became renowned throughout Europe for his great skill as a performer during the 1800s. He is said to have been the most technically advanced and perhaps greatest pianist of all time. He was also an important and influential composer, a notable piano teacher, a conductor who contributed significantly to the modern development of the art, and a benefactor to other composers and performers, notably Richard Wagner and Hector Berlioz.

As a composer, Liszt was one of the most prominent representatives of the “neudeutsche schule” (“New German School”). He left behind a huge and diverse body of work, in which he influenced his forward-looking contemporaries and anticipated some 20th-century ideas and trends. Some of his most notable contributions were the invention of the symphonic poem, developing the concept of thematic transformation as part of his experiments in musical form and making radical departures in harmony.