Romantic Discoveries Recordings

Piano Music of Walter Niemann volume 12
4 Ballades, op. 81 • Sanssouci Gavotte, op. 65 • Janmaaten, op. 136 • Trianon – Menuet favori, op. 66 • Singende Fontäne, op. 30 • 3 Sonatinas, op. 24 • Romantic Impromptu, op. 31 • Butterfly-Etude, op. 82 (includes first recordings)
John Kersey, piano
RDR CD122

Total time: 74 minutes 36 seconds

1. Four Ballades, op. 81 (27:38)
i. Römische Campagna | Dem Wanderer steigt vor den Trümmern eines alten Tempels eine leuchtende Vision antiken Lebens auf. Sie bricht auf ihrem dithyrambischen Höhepunkt zusammen; wieder liegt die römische Campagna in schwermütiger Verlassenheit da. | ii. Nordische Heide | Das düstere Grauen einer unheimlichen Mordstelle unterbricht die Erinnerung an altes frohes Jagdleben. | iii. Sonntag in Lissabon | Die helle heitere (Ständchen) und die dunkle leidenschaftliche Seite (Mittelsatz) des Volkslebens schliessen sich unter leisem Klang der Kirchenglocken zur Ballade zusammen. | iv. Nordische Meerfahrt
2. Sanssouci Gavotte, op. 65 (3:49)

3. Janmaaten (Shipmates) – two humoresques from the Hamburg harbour, op. 136 (6:32)
i. Thetje and his little daughters ii. With Jan Hinnerk in the “Merry Seal”

4. Trianon – Menuet favori, op. 66 (3:05)
5. The Singing Fountain (Nocturne), op. 30 (4:55)

6. Sonatina in C major, op. 24 no. 1 (6:07)
i. Allegro commodo e non troppo ii. Little variations on a Danish folksong (“Ich legte mein Haupt auf dem Elfenhügel” from Friedrich Kuhlau’s opera “Elves’ Hill”) iii. Rondo. Molto giocoso quasi Presto

7. Sonatina in A minor, op. 24 no. 2 (7:20)
i. Molto moderato ii. Andantino tranquillo iii. Rondo. Vivace e giocoso

8. Sonatina in D major, op. 24 no. 3 (8:38)
i. Allegro molto moderato e tranquillo, quasi Allegretto ii. Andantino cantabile e tranquillo iii. Allegro molto con brio

9. Romantisches Impromptu, op. 31 (4:59)
10. Schmetterling – Etude, op. 82 (1:11)

Our thanks go to Nicolo Figowy and Steffen Herrmann for their generous loan of scores.

Walter Niemann was regarded in 1927 as “the most important living piano composer who knows how to make music from the piano in a subtle and colorful way, although he often enters the field of salon music” (H. Abert, Illustrated Music Lexicon). This most sensitive and introverted master of the piano devoted his life to composition and musical scholarship, also performing his music in concerts and radio broadcasts. Niemann’s vast output for the piano is only now starting to become more widely known. Although his style is generally unashamedly conservative, he was one of the very few German composers to explore Impressionism in music, and this also reflected a fascination with the Far East. Elsewhere, Niemann’s imagination takes us from much Baroque recreation to large-scale epic sonatas, Schumannesque miniatures and even the exploration of early jazz styles. His understanding of the capabilities of the piano was complete, and his works include both collections for young pianists and mature works that exploit the full range of pianistic effect and make significant demands on the performer.