Ligeti: Complete Piano Music Vol 2 / Fredrik Ullén

György Ligeti's piano music is fiendishly complex, and on the evidence of this disc pianist Fredrik Ullén--who is also a researcher in neuroscience--is more than up to its challenges. The works span fifty-five years of Ligeti's output, from the two-piano pieces of 1942-43 to what was at the time the most recent of his etudes, composed in 1997. All display the composer's eclectic personal style, which blends traditional elements with more avant-garde styles. Tastes of minimalism are found throughout, from sections of 'Musica Ricercata' which feature burbling ostinatos to the "Self-portrait" of the 1976 'Three Pieces,' which explicitly acknowledges Steve Reich and Terry Riley (as well as Chopin) in both its subtitle and its music.
Ullén Read more performs both parts of the two-piano works himself, listening to the first part while recording the second. The stated goal of recording both parts with the same pianist on the same instrument is to obtain the best possible ensemble and balance, and it appears to have been a success. Whether with four hands or only two, Ullén handles Ligeti's difficult music with ease. Read less

1.

Tréfás induló by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1942
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 2 Minutes 6 Secs.

2.

Musica ricercata (11) for Piano by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1951-1953; Hungary
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 27 Minutes 22 Secs.

3.

Etudes (4) for Piano, Book 3: no 15, White on white by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: Modern
Written: 1995
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 3 Minutes 5 Secs.

4.

Etudes (4) for Piano, Book 3: no 16, Pour Irina by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1997
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 2 Minutes 56 Secs.

5.

Pieces (3) for 2 Pianos: no 1, Monument by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1976; Berlin, Germany
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 5 Minutes 13 Secs.

6.

Pieces (3) for 2 Pianos: no 2, Selbstporträt mit Reich und Riley (und Chopin ist auch dabei) by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1976; Berlin, Germany
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 8 Minutes 27 Secs.

7.

Pieces (3) for 2 Pianos: no 3, In zart fliessender Bewegung by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1976; Berlin, Germany
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 4 Minutes 27 Secs.

8.

Allegro for Piano 4 hands by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1943
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 0 Minutes 39 Secs.

9.

Sonatina for Piano 4 hands by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1950
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 4 Minutes 23 Secs.

10.

Polyphonic étude for Piano 4 hands by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1943
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 1 Minutes 40 Secs.

11.

Wedding Dances (3) for Piano 4 hands by György Ligeti
Performer: Fredrik Ullén (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1950
Date of Recording: 07/1998
Venue: Danderyd Grammar School, Denmark
Length: 2 Minutes 56 Secs.

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