Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Piano Sonata in B minor S.178 (1853)
Étude de concert S.144 Un sospiro (1848)
Étude de concert S.144 La leggierezza (1848)
Étude de concert S.145 Gnomenreigen (1863)
Sonetto 123 del Petrarca S.161 No 6 (1858)
Schumann-Liszt: Widmung [Liebeslied] S.566
Valse de l’opéra Faust S.407 (1861)
Kasparas Uinskas (piano)
rec. 2023, Lithuanian National Philharmonic Hall, Vilnius, Lithuania
Hänssler Classic HC24037 [66]
Kasparas Uinskas is a young Lithuanian pianist who has performed in many of the world’s leading concert halls including Carnegie Hall, the Berlin Philharmonie and the Wigmore Hall. He performs a wide range of works from across the piano repertoire although he is most closely associated with the Romantic repertoire. His first solo recital disc focused on the music of Chopin and Rachmaninov. In this disc he shifts his attention to the piano music of Franz Liszt.
The first work on the recording is Liszt’s ubiquitous B Minor Sonata. Liszt completed his only sonata in 1853, and it was dedicated to Robert Schumann. It was not universally well received by Liszt’s contemporaries: Clara Schumann referred to it as “merely a blind noise” while Brahms reputedly fell asleep during Liszt’s performance of the work. Nowadays, it is regarded as one of the great staples of the repertoire and many theories exist about a hidden programme for the piece. There are arguments around whether it is influenced by Faust, Dante or Milton’s Paradise Lost or a combination of all these influences.
This work forms the centre piece of Uniskas’s recording and there is much to admire here. The single staccato notes which open the work are perfectly weighted and prepare the way for the descent into the abyss. The account is highly Romantic and he brings nobility, ardour, passion and an elfin mercurial quality to the opening section. He gives a barnstorming performance of the double octave passage and the climax to the first movement is incendiary. Uinskas’s handling of the Andante middle section is impressive, and I particularly like the tension he creates in the recitative and his handling of the ostinato chords. There is a wonderful feeling of intimacy and space in the lyrical central interlude as the relationship between Faust and Gretchen comes into view. The impassioned outbursts which follow hark back to the grand romantic tradition. The black mischief of Mephistopheles dominates the fugato section as the whirling contrapuntal lines are dispatched with crisp efficiency. The final section is nothing less than a virtuoso tour de force which I am sure would bring the house down in a live performance. The final epilogue is slightly slower and more ponderous than other performances but very effective. The music moves seamlessly to salvation and transcendence before Mephistopheles has the last word.
It is difficult to compare this performance with that of other exponents of the B Minor Sonata as there are so many excellent performances and multiple interpretations of this work. Uinskas clearly has an excellent grasp of the architecture of the work, and he has the virtuoso technique to generate some thrilling playing. He adopts slightly slower tempi than some of his peers in the more lyrical episodes of the work, but this thoughtful approach pays dividends in illuminating key details within the score.
Uinskas follows up the B Minor Sonata with three of Liszt’s concert studies which date from 1848 and 1862 respectively. He brings a wonderful poetic sensibility to Un sospiro and draws the listener into the grand romantic sweep of the piece. La leggierezza has a light mercurial quality and Uinskas conjures up rich diverse colours in the various transformation of the theme. He brings a light touch and dazzling finger work to Gnomenreigen and succeeds in painting a vivid picture of the gnomes’ dance.
The final work on the programme is Liszt’s famous transcription of the waltz from Act 2 of Gounod’s Faust. Shura Cherkassky was particularly fond of this piece and often performed it in his recitals. Uinskas unleashes his full technique to deliver an unbridled performance of this great showpiece. Liszt’s cadenzas, filigree figurations, arpeggios and glissandi are all dispatched in a dazzling virtuoso display.
This first-rate recording breathes new life and ideas into these great staples of the repertoire.
Robert Beattie
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