Klavier & Co – Iberia 2022

Isaac Albéniz was a self-taught prodigy, an adventurous globetrotter in both Americas as an adolescent, a bar pianist, a Liszt pupil, a temporary Parisian by choice, an acclaimed piano virtuoso, a prolific composer of salon music of the highest quality and of lyrical zarzuelas - a dazzling personality between stardom, excessive lifestyle and self-doubt. Although Catalan, he felt a strong bond with Andalusia as a "Moor". In his last years, the ailing virtuoso created a monumental cycle of visionary piano pieces, a journey through his homeland with a long stay in the beloved south, which was enviously recognised by friend Debussy as a key pianistic work of the beginning 20th century. Albéniz was unable to complete the last piece. With the Portuguese star pianist Artur Pizarro, a consummate rendition of this exceptional work by an ardent man and artist is to be expected.