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Piano Works: Mari Kodama / Pentatone hybrid SACD
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Mari Kodama celebrates the Bruckner bicentenary year with a collection of piano works, most of which are rarely heard. While some of them, such as the Fantasie, Erinnerung, and Stille Betrachtung, reveal the serious symphonist and church composer, the many dances included on this album illuminate a lighter side of the composer. In general, hearing his approach to the piano enriches our understanding of this enigmatic genius. As much of the material was taken from study sketchbooks, these pieces allow us a look into the workshop of this ever-searching spirit. To Kodama, the Bruckner that appears from his works is in many ways more interesting than the various, cliché-ridden accounts of his life and character. Instead, Kodama aims to paint a nuanced Bruckner portrait, gaining in depth thanks to the original selection and perspective. Mari Kodama is one of the most extraordinary pianists of our age and has an impressive Pentatone discography, featuring Beethoven’s complete piano sonatas (2003-2014), piano concertos of Loewe and Chopin (2003), Tchaikovsky Ballet Suites for Piano Duo (2016), De Falla’s Nights in the Gardens of Spain (2017), Martinu’s Concerto for Two Pianos (2018), Kaleidoscope, Beethoven Transcriptions, and MON AMI Mon amour (both 2020), New Paths (2022), and Mozart & Poulenc Double Concertos (2024).
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