Track Listing

1. I. Allegro
2. II. Adagio
3. III. Allegro assai
4. I. Allegro
5. II. Andantino
6. III. Scherzo. Allegro vivace
7. IV. Rondo. Allegretto
8. Préambule
9. Pierrot
10. Arlequin
11. Valse noble
12. Eusebius
13. Florestan
14. Coquette
15. Réplique - [Sphinxes]
16. Papillons
17. A.S.C.H. - S.C.H.A. (Lettres dansantes)
18. Chiarina
19. Chopin
20. Estrella
21. Reconnaissance
22. Pantalon et Colombine
23. Valse allemande - Paganini - Valse allemande (reprise)
24. Aveu
25. Promenade
26. Pause
27. Marche des "Davidsbündler" contre les Philistins

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #331744 in Music
• Released on: 2005-01-04
• Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Annie Fischer Live
A wonderful 1984 performance from the great Hungarian pianist Annie Fischer, who was 70 at the time of this Montreal concert. She plays Mozart K332, Schubert D959, and Schumann Carnaval. Few details are provided about the circumstances of this concert, and this tape was made off air following the concert (the original radio tapes apparantly are lost). In any event, for Annie Fischer fans this is as indispensible as the recent series of BBC Legend discs. The highlight for me is a wonderfully fluent performance of the Schubert D959, perhaps his finest sonata (at least my favorite). I highly recommend this CD as a fascinating document of a great musician, who brought a unique intensity to the art of piano playing. There is something intangible that always grabs me when I listen to her perform the familiar classic pieces that she so loved. There is a caveat on the sound quality listed in the liner notes, but nothing of major significance that I could hear--maybe a slight pitch wobble that the ear easily adjusts to. Fans of Annie Fischer will want to grab this while it is still available. By the way, can anyone explain how Phillips could have overlooked Fischer in the Great Pianist of the Century series? I mean, Andre Previn but no Annie Fischer!

Not to be Missed
Annie Fischer is without doubt one of the pianistic giants of the 20th Century, possessing a most perceptive musical mind and a depth of expression that is both profound and moving. She is however sadly under-represented on records.

This disc is especially valuable for giving us a chance to hear her in Mozart's F major Sonata K332 and Schubert's A major Sonata D959, two works which she never recorded commercially.

The Mozart is sublime: the music is delivered with the utmost simplicity and directness.

As for the Schubert, there are unavoidably some technical hiccups in the first two movements, but those mishaps hardly affect the pianist's masterly grasp of the overall architecture of the piece, and she recovers sufficiently to give us scintillating performances of the scherzo and the finale rondo, which stay in the mind.

It is good that live recordings such as these are issued to allow us to appreciate the inimitable artistry and musicianship of a truly great pianist, who has been frustratingly ommited from the Philips Great Pianists series.

great pianist
Annie Fischer is a great pianist and this recording is wonderful.
I heard she wasn't included on Philips series of the greatest pianists because of sexist people. Also some pianist got 3vol while others got just 2 or 1.It's sad.