The music of Busoni is demanding but rewards exploration. One hopes that his star is once more in the ascendant. The dark 1850 transcription of the Liszt’s Fantasy and Fugue on “Ad nos, ad salutarem undam” is magnificent. The piano’s burnished lower registers evoke the majesty of the King of Instruments, while Wolf Harden’s keening, almost reverent way with the contrasting plateaux is most effective. The extended (8:47) ruminations of the central Adagio are here almost trance-inducing; they serve to prepare for a Fugue that is a journey of technical rigour combined with huge technical demands. Harden meets all challenges head-on and fearlessly, according the resonant climax a stirring grandeur.

Franz Liszt�s massive organ work on Ad Nos, ad Salutarem Undam is heard in Busoni�s splendid transcription from 1897. Although it does sometimes show up in recitals, it�s a brave pianist who attempts to hold an audience with the dense textures, rhetorical gestures, and intellectual discipline of this music. It can be a great experience in the right hands, and Harden embraces the demands with clarity, depth, and feeling. The central Adagio is Liszt at his expressive best.

The Piano Sonata in F minor by the teenage Busoni is a mightily impressive accomplishment. As the notes point out, it owes something in technique to Anton Rubinstein, but seems to range all over the place and points the way towards Busoni�s future style. The best movement of this goliath of a sonata is the Andante con moto. It is bathed in a late romantic radiance that Harden captures exquisitely. The closing movement is almost improvisational in sound until the start of the final neo-classical fugue. It is surprising that this music is not more often heard, though it does take almost a half hour.

Closing the program is the Prelude and Etude in Arpeggios. This dates from 1923 and is one of Busoni�s last works. It is somewhat impressionist and sometimes ambiguous as to tonality. At the low Naxos price, and given the unusual repertory, purchase would seem to be mandatory for Busoni enthusiasts. The notes are good, and the recording clear.