Liner notes for the Chopin album (Decca)

In these pieces Chopin conceales his most profound thoughts, confessions and concerns, following a narrative rhythm that is always varied, yet inimitable and unique. Each of these works recounts a magical truth dwelling in special harmonies that no one else could have invented, in a tone so exalted that it can almost never be tied down to specific situations. The programme of this CD corresponds to an emotional criterion, avoiding the traditional grouping by opus number, genre or year of composition and instead pursuing a particular inner path.

Chopin's music is indissolubly bound up with the tone-colour nature of the piano, and it is not fortuitous that many pianists find a particular affinity with his compositions. One of the aspects that most fascinates me resides in the bewitching beauty of the resonances that Chopin succeeds in drawing from the instrument, thanks to the special distribution of the voices between the two hands and the unusual, brilliant use of the pedal. All this is particularly evident in the famous Nocturne op. 9 no. 2, especially when the melody fades into A flat minor (1.02 and 1.56), expressing a complex mélange of varied feelings: disillusion, pleasurable nostalgia for lost affection and pensive contemplation of recollections, not without a glimmer of hope. Also remarkable is the coda, which closes on a magical, distilled reiteration of the chord of E flat major.

This is the hypnotic tapestry of harmony that engenders the sparkling arabesques of the celebrated "Minute Waltz" op. 64 no. 1. In spite of its extreme brevity, condensed within it are numerous expressive approaches, from the exhilarating diaphaneity of the opening scales (varied by nostalgic touches of chromaticism) to the broad cantabile quality of the central episode.

In contrast, the following – and complementary – Valse op. 64 no. 2 has a tranquil, melancholy quality, with a sad, sorrowful theme interrupted by frequent sighs and marked by the variegated appoggiaturas delineated by the melody. The structure is AB CB AB, in which the B part forms a kind of comment in descending sextuplets, assuming an increasingly nostalgic significance at each return. The appearance of the C theme in D flat major (1.29) is magical: an oasis of peace, naturally enveloped in a dream-like atmosphere which soon disappears, giving way to the most disconsolate reality.

The Nocturne op. posth. in C sharp minor (an unforgettable refrain in the film The Pianist) carries on from the mood of the preceding Valse almost without a break. The famous theme is accompanied by a slow movement of quadruplets in the left hand, occasionally assuming a melodic dignity, as if commenting in the background on the main melody. The central part in the major mode (in the manuscript version, used here) presents an unusual combination of two different times: 3/4 in the right hand and 4/4 in the left hand, creating a hazy feeling of estrangement which anticipates the achievements of composers such as Scriabin and Debussy (1.29).

The final arpeggio (unexpectedly in the major) of the Nocturne introduces us to the unreal tranquillity of Prélude op. 28 no. 15 in D flat major, based on the obsessive repeated striking of A flat – it seems to have been inspired by the constant dripping which obsessed the composer in the monastery in Valldemossa, in Majorca. It is amazing how Chopin succeeds in giving very varied qualities to this repeated note (which marks the rhythm of the whole piece, without a break). Very soon the initial pure serenity darkens: the A flat changes enharmonically to G sharp, acquiring sombre aspects and becoming full of dark forebodings. After two gloomy dynamic outbursts in the central part, a touching transition (3.21) leads back to the initial bewitching purity, yet without ever abandoning the fatalistic tolling.

The explosive beginning of Étude op. 10 no. 12 fully reveals the impetuous, tragic side of Chopin's personality, and in this context it provides a kind of reaction to the mood of nostalgic happiness with which the preceding Prelude ended: a sort of abrupt awakening, a return to harsh reality after dreaming of a distant, ineffable, lost beauty.

The two peremptory chords that mark the end of the Étude are followed by the even more fatalistic chords of Prélude op. 28 no. 20 in C minor. It is a funeral march with a simple ABB structure, where the repetition of the B section as an echo (1.03: a pianissimo of extreme tension and suffering, leading to the dramatic final crescendo) represents the most brilliant point of the work.

The suspended opening (illusorily in C major) would be sufficient for the Ballade op. 52 to be considered a genuine masterpiece: ten repeated Gs constitute the first voice, which enters almost on tiptoe, as if coming from a distant, unreal world, with a gradual crescendo. At the fourth G a second voice, in the tenor register, makes its appearance; unlike the other one, after a relatively loud beginning it starts to diminish. This is one of the most complex points for the performer, who has to try to maintain this dichotomy, not only dynamic but also, above all, emotional, without losing sight of the fragile equilibrium of the overall phrasing. But the entire opening episode, subsequently enriched by the entry of other voices, is no more than a preamble introducing the main theme in F minor. It has a strange, almost claustrophobic cantabile quality: as if it were trying to expand but not succeeding, therefore being obliged to withdraw into itself. Alternating in the following episode, with its more serene, dream-like quality, said theme undergoes numerous elaborations, which nevertheless accentuate the sense of suffering and torment. Release is only dreamed of or imagined in the magical moments of suspension, such as the five chords that precede the coda (9.56). This, the apotheosis of the drama impending since the beginning of the piece, imposes a drastic, definitive, unappealable ending.

The first phrase of Nocturne op. 62 no. 2, to quote a metaphor taken from Fou Ts'ong, is a tree that starts with the trunk (i.e., the beginning of the first bar) and expands into many branches in accordance with a harmonious design, varied and unitary at the same time. The middle part is much more agitated, almost breathless, leading to the return of the opening theme. After a first recapitulation in E major, it undergoes a sudden change in harmony descending of one tone and sublimating to the more veiled, unreal tonality of D major (3.13) in a dreamy atmosphere of great beauty.

After the contrapuntal abstraction of the preceding pieces, the broad cantabile quality of the celebrated Étude op. 10 no. 3 takes on an even warmer, richer colour. Here, too, the magic comes in the recapitulation of the opening theme, particularly in the final crescendo (3.31), which I feel almost in a negative sense, as a kind of inner climax that does not need any real increase in dynamics.

In Chopin's mature works the concept of counterpoint is no longer limited to an intellectual superimposition of lines: for each voice has its own individuality, the polyphony becomes a mixture of varied emotional situations, coexisting and producing results of great intensity. A good example of this is Mazurka op. 59 no. 1, where the rapid change of harmonies brings about a constant alternation of different moods. Particularly poetic is the transition to the tonality of A major which marks the beginning of the central part of the work (1.01). Here time seems to stop for a moment, then gradually building up great tension until the climax which comes before the recapitulation (2.01). There is a charming coda where, with a sustained E, the tolling of the chord of E major reverberates in the emptiness, before everything ends inevitably, unhesitatingly, in silence.

The beginning of Mazurka op. 59 no. 2 fits perfectly into this mood, going on to develop a series of melodic and metric chiasmi, boldly playing with chromatic harmonies and dissonances derived from the superimposition of contrasting voices.

We return to a gloomy atmosphere in Nocturne op. 27 no. 1, where the melody does not have the typical characteristics of Chopin's "bel canto": in fact it is a creeping theme, initially concealed in the harmonic space of the slow arpeggios in the left hand. The melody then gradually expands until the explosive central part, where Chopin attains pinnacles of dynamics and emotional tension which are among the most exalted in his entire output. After a cadence in octaves in the lower register, there is a plunge back into the darkness of the opening theme, unexpectedly sublimated into a coda in the major mode, which is magically more cheerful.

This leads on naturally to the form of the exquisite (and typically Bellini-like) melody of Nocturne op. 27 no. 2, wide-ranging and full of chromatic nuances. After the first statement the melody appears twice again: first pianissimo and then forte. There is a particularly inspired coda (4.20), supported by a tonic pedal which swathes varied harmonies in a still, supernatural quietude.

Nocturne op. 15 no. 2 opens with a definite, affirmative phrase, yet it is imbued with a latent uneasiness that gradually tends to dissolve into light arabesques. The middle section has a bold polyrhythmic quality (five against four), so that it begins with a hazy colour and wavering movement, going on to build up a great climax leading to the recapitulation.

This exploration comes to a suitable conclusion in Nocturne op. 55 no. 2, possibly the most abstract and speculative of Chopin's works. A solitary B flat marks the beginning of a melody with an unusual shape and length, which acquires a multitude of expressive features based on varied harmonic passages and superimpositions with other voices (sometimes polyrhythmic and dissonant, as in the climax at 2.20). The contents are sublimated to a metaphysical stage, in a spiritual dimension reaching out above and beyond the real world.

This recording was produced trying to keep intact the natural beauty of a concert grand Steinway characterized by a particularly rich and warm tone. Therefore, no postproduction elaboration of the sound was made, thanks to the acoustic features of the Tau Recording Studio, situated in an ancient hall at Palazzo Pennisi di Floristella in Acireale, Sicily. I also want to heartily thank Mr. Andrea Alia for his highly professional assistance and his trustful collaboration in this project.

Chopin’s music has the power to disclose unique poetic horizons. To me, these pieces represent a spiritual path of rare beauty and deepness.

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