Franck; Ravel; Debussy - Piano Music (Ivan Moravec)

Information

Composer: César Franck; Maurice Ravel; Claude Debussy

1. Franck - Prélude, choral et fugue, M. 21: 1. Prélude. Moderato
2. Franck - Prélude, choral et fugue, M. 21: 2. Chorale. Poco più lento
3. Franck - Prélude, choral et fugue, M. 21: 3. Fugue. Poco allegro
4. Ravel - Sonatine in F sharp minor: 1. Modéré
5. Ravel - Sonatine in F sharp minor: 2. Mouvement de menuet
6. Ravel - Sonatine in F sharp minor: 3. Animé
7. Debussy - Préludes - Book 2, L. 123: 12. Feux d'artifice
8. Debussy - Préludes - Book 1, L. 117: 10. La Cathédrale engloutie
9. Debussy - Préludes - Book 1, L. 117: 5. Les collines d'Anacapri
10. Debussy - Préludes - Book 1, L. 117: 4. Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l'air du soir
11. Debussy - Préludes - Book 2, L. 123: 7. La terrasse des audiences du clair de lune
12. Debussy - Pour le piano, L. 95: 1. Prélude
13. Debussy - Pour le piano, L. 95: 2. Sarabande
14. Debussy - Pour le piano, L. 95: 3. Toccata

Ivan Moravec, piano

Date: 1962; 1965; 1969 / 2001

Label: Supraphon

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César Franck (10 December 1822 – 8 November 1890) was a composer, pianist, organist, and music teacher who worked in Paris during his adult life. As an organist he was particularly noted for his skill in improvisation. Franck is considered by many the greatest composer of organ music after Bach. Franck exerted a significant influence on music. He helped to renew and reinvigorate chamber music and developed the use of cyclic form. He became professor at the Paris Conservatoire in 1872, his pupils included Vincent d'Indy, Ernest Chausson, Louis Vierne, Charles Tournemire, Guillaume Lekeu and Henri Duparc.

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Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy. Born to a music-loving family, Ravel attended the Paris Conservatoire. After leaving the conservatoire, he found his own way as a composer, developing a style of great clarity and incorporating elements of modernism, baroque, neoclassicism and, in his later works, jazz. Among his works to enter the repertoire are pieces for piano, chamber music, two piano concertos, ballet music, two operas and eight song cycles.

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Claude Debussy (22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer who was among the most influential composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His orchestral works include Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune (1894), Nocturnes (1897–1899), Images (1905–1912), and La mer (1903–1905). His piano works include sets of 24 Préludes and 12 Études. Throughout his career Debussy also wrote mélodies based on a wide variety of poetry, including his own. His works have strongly influenced a wide range of composers including Béla Bartók, Olivier Messiaen, George Benjamin, and the jazz musician Bill Evans.

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Ivan Moravec (9 November 1930 – 27 July 2015) was a Czech pianist. Trained at the Prague Conservatory and later with Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, he gained international recognition after acclaimed debut performances in London and the United States. Moravec collaborated with leading conductors and major orchestras worldwide, performing at prestigious concert halls and festivals. His award-winning recordings for Nonesuch, Vox and Supraphon established him as one of the foremost pianists of the 20th century. He was also a respected educator at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague from 1969 to 2014.

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