The Romantic Piano Concerto Series · Vol. 22 · Busoni

Marc-André Hamelin (piano), City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Mark Elder (conductor)

GRAMOPHONE EDITOR'S CHOICE
CLASSIC CD 100 GREATEST DISCS OF THE DECADE



'Sensational … Anyone who has the slightest doubts about Busoni's stature as a composer will surely be won over by this magisterial recording' (Piano International)

'Dark, turbulent, horribly difficult to play, very long - and probably my disc of the year … This fine new recording does full justice to every aspect of the work. [It] will surely help to establish Busoni as an unarguably major composer' (Classic CD)

'Busoni makes ridiculous demands on pianists, but in Marc-André Hamelin's hands, it all sounds perfectly reasonable. It isn't: it's noble, hilarious, impressive and gloriously over the top.' (BBC Music Magazine)

'Hamelin's account is quite extraordinary, especially in the cadenza, in which the virtuosity he unleashes reaches barely credible heights … one of his finest achievements to date.' (International Piano Quarterly)

' A dazzling disc. If any pianist can clarify and define this bewildering work it is Hamelin, with his razor-sharp reflexes, a technique that knows no difficulties and, even more important, a ready sympathy for Busoni's abrupt changes of pace and direction … a spine-tingling experience.' (Gramophone)

'Like no other performance that I've heard it proves what a richly enjoyable piece it is' (Gramophone)

'Another awe-inspiring feat from this prodigiously virtuosic Canadian' (Gramophone)