Beatrice Rana – Chopin: 12 Etudes, Op. 25 & 4 Scherzi (2021) [FLAC 24bit/192kHz]

‘Beatrice Rana set a new standard. She made the Chopin sound as poetic and colorful as anything he ever wrote. Her playing was refined and soft-spoken in its brilliance throughout. She had the audience rapt.’ – The New York Time

Beatrice Rana is back with a Chopin album to enchant listeners like never before. A musical prodigy recognised at an young age, the Italian pianist took to the stage early on, interpreting the great composers. However, entering Chopin’s world was to take until she was 16: “My relationship with Chopin began relatively late – my teacher, Benedetto Lupo, did not want to introduce me to the composer early in my studies. At the time I was disappointed and frustrated, but now I can understand his reasoning. I began playing the Preludes at 16, and tackling them before then would not have been right for me. Chopin is reserved, visionary and mysterious – certainly not an easy composer for performers to deal with, requiring a huge amount of preparation and thorough research. There are Romantic elements to his work, but it is never sweet or sugary – it has powerful musical substance, even ferocious in places.”

Following her first recordings of Chopin’s Pr’eludes in 2012 (on ATMA Classique), Chopin’s 12 Etudes Op. 25 and four Scherzi now follow – almost ten years later – on her trusted label Warner Classics. It is an album that is particularly distinguishable as Rana has a unique understanding of the Polish-French composer, and a profound engagement with his compositional style. Rana knows how to interpret Chopin in the context of his epoch, being careful not to reduce him to romantic clich’es. In his 12 Etudes she develops – despite their respective autonomy – a common thread that runs through her recordings. Both the harmonic and vocal lightness of the first part and the emotional severity of the latter are reproduced here not in contrast but as a cohesive musical unit. The four Scherzi that follow on from this probably form the crowning conclusion of this disc. Rana’s virtuosity and technical skills are on full display here, with her fingers gliding over the keys at lightning speed and at the same time, with enormous precision, as for example in the extremely rapid Scherzo No. 1, Op. 20. Rana claims that Chopin made the piano sing. On this album, we can say the same about her. – Lena Germann

Tracklist:
1. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 1 in A-Flat Major, “Aeolian Harp”
2. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 2 in F Minor
3. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 3 in F Major
4. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 4 in A Minor
5. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 5 in E Minor
6. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 6 in G-Sharp Minor
7. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 7 in C-Sharp Minor
8. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 8 in D-Flat Major
9. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 9 in G-Flat Major, “Butterfly”
10. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 10 in B Minor
11. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 11 in A Minor, “Winter Wind”
12. Beatrice Rana – 12 ‘Etudes, Op. 25: No. 12 in C Minor
13. Beatrice Rana – Scherzo No. 1 in B Minor, Op. 20
14. Beatrice Rana – Scherzo No. 2 in B-Flat Minor, Op. 31
15. Beatrice Rana – Scherzo No. 3 in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 39
16. Beatrice Rana – Scherzo No. 4 in E Major, Op. 54