Beethoven : Variations Diabelli Op.120

Description

Variation is change — a creative impulse that has inspired composers for centuries. Among the great variation cycles in music history, one stands like an eight-thousand-meter peak: the 33 Variations on a Waltz by Anton Diabelli, Op. 120 by Ludwig van Beethoven. In her new recording, pianist Lei Meng places this monumental work from Beethoven's maturity at the heart of the program and invites the listener on a true ascent into the composer's most daring imagination. Lei Meng pairs this masterful cycle with an early work by Beethoven: the energetic and strongly characterized Bagatelle in C minor WoO 52 from 1795. One can already perceive the composer who would make the key of C minor his signature, with a spirit close to the scherzo, a driving energy, and a delicately luminous trio in C major.