Alkan, born Morhange in Paris in 1813, was among the most gifted piano virtuosi of his time. Much of his life, in particular from 1853 onwards, was spent in eccentric isolation. His remarkable abilities as a pianist, in later years only intermittently displayed, were coupled with an equally remarkable body of keyboard compositions, neglected until recent years. In addition to his musical interests, he maintained his classical and biblical studies, the latter reflecting the Jewish faith into which he had been born and to which he remained loyal throughout his life.

Piano Music

While Alkan's piano music includes the operatic fantasias and transcriptions fashionable in his time, his more remarkable works must be his virtuoso Etudes, notably the set in all minor keys, containing a Scherzo diabolique, Symphony, Concerto, Ouverture and final Festin d'Esope variations. The four movement Symphony includes a sober Marche funèbre. There are Préludes in all keys, major and minor, many with idiosyncratic titles, Impromptus, Etudes in all major keys and a set of 48 Esquisses, the last as original as anything else he wrote. Much of Alkan's piano music makes fierce technical demands on any performer and the larger works are massive in scale and conception.

Discography