Sibelius

Description

Leif Ove Andsnes has a deep interest in the music of Sibelius, which he has known for a long time. Since 1990, his passion has been fueled by his meeting with one of its best interpreters in the 20th century, the Finnish conductor Paavo Berglund (1929-2012), under whose direction he played a lot. Sibelius wrote more than 150 works for piano, but these have long remained in the shadow of his orchestral music. Often considered devoid of the rich sound textures characteristic of his orchestral scores, they are largely ignored. Exploring the entirety of the composer's piano output, Leif Ove Andsnes has carefully selected the pieces he deems worthy of recognition and with which he feels a deep affinity, discovering "intriguing works, endowed with the wonderful qualities we know from this composer." He recorded his new album at the Teldex Studio in Berlin earlier this year. "There was such a sense of discovery!," he recounts. Everyone was amazed at the idea that people could be completely unaware of such beautiful and accessible music by a major composer. It is wonderful to think that many will hear it for the first time.