Europolis
Maria Lettberg (piano)
rec. 2024, Villa Teresa, Coswig, Germany
Oehms Classics OC1738 [80]

Whether this kind of thing has been done before I don’t know, but it’s a neat idea to play something by composers representing every member country of the EU. Latvian-born Swedish pianist Maria Lettberg set herself a singular challenge when she decided to compile a list of what she describes as the ‘most outstanding piece for each European country’. Whether she has managed that is a highly subjective matter. No doubt there will be plenty who do not agree with her selection. There will be those who, while they may agree that Beethoven should represent Germany, believe that other works than the selected Sonata in C minor, Op.13 that should have been chosen, or a different movement than the Rondo. What can hardly be argued is that these are self-evidently brilliant examples of European musical culture at its best. I think it is best to accept her choice, simply sit back and enjoy it and marvel at the tremendous contribution Europe has made to the musical heritage of the world.

That is not to say – as Wolfgang-Andreas Schultz has written in the booklet – that Europe has any right to claim that it alone is the centre of excellence in terms of music history. In recent years other centres of culture, previously written off as either ‘folklore’, or at best ‘ethnic music’, have been recognised as having contributed just as importantly to world culture. Additionally, it needs to be remembered that Europe naturally made its influence felt outside of its borders, in the US for example, and in Latin America, for where would we be without Copland, Gershwin and Leonard Bernstein or Villa-Lobos? Or, moving further afield, Toru Takemitsu? That said, this disc fulfils its remit admirably and among the selection are several that will both surprise and delight because, for various reasons, most of the listening public will, I’m sure be unfamiliar with the music of Portugal, Lithuania, Romania, Croatia, Bulgaria, Latvia, Slovakia, Malta, Slovenia, Luxembourg and Cyprus. Those chosen to represent the music of Western and Central Europe will be familiar to most of us and the music of Scarlatti, Mozart, Beethoven, John Field, Chopin, Liszt, César Franck, Dvořák, Albeniz, Debussy, Sibelius, Nielsen and Pӓrt are both well-known and well-loved.

The disc begins with such a sensitively shaped performance of Sweelinck’s Paduana Lachrimae that one can imagine tears running down cheeks and it has much to do with the carefully measured pace, and the pauses which are as important as any other constituent. There are several highlights and the next I felt came with John Field’s Nocturne No.2 C minor. It is important to remember that it was Field who invented the nocturne, a genre which so influenced Chopin and in a ‘blind tasting’ one would be forgiven for believing this to be Chopin. Maria Lettberg allows the music to flow so naturally that the precious nature of the piece stands as a perfect example of the style with a gentle elegance that is a joy to hear. Likewise, her rendition of César Franck’s Prélude (arr. for piano by Harold Bauer) is so beautifully shaped that it confirms my opinion that Franck’s music is far better than it is given credit for. The fragile beauty of Debussy’s Bruyères is perfectly captured, the delicacy of his writing coming through so clearly you immediately want to hear more. I would certainly relish a disc of her playing Debussy for she absolutely has the measure of his music under her fingers. Another whose music shows delicacy, requiring careful and gentle treatment is Lithuanian Mikalojus Čiurlionis and this Maria clearly delivers and with it a perfect introduction to this all too rarely heard composer. This is quickly followed by Enescu’s Mélodie also requiring similar handling which it gets. For those who don’t know Countess Dora Pejačević, Maria’s playing of her lovely Roses will encourage them to seek out more of her music. There is a feeling of communality amongst the composers of Eastern Europe, whether in the South as in Bulgaria or Romania or the Baltic States since all the pieces chosen to represent them have a similar quality with a whiff of fragile nostalgia that permeates the music and Maria Lettberg’s undoubted gift for playing this kind of music is plain to hear. The same elements are obvious in Slovak composer Eugen Suchoň and his tiny piece Preludio is lovingly played. Mikis Theodorakis is usefully associated with robust and powerful social statements so his gentle piece Melos No.10 comes as a surprise but he was such an excellent composer (remember Zorba the Greek) that he was able to be as gentle as he was declamatory but again Maria ably shows that aspect in its best light. I had no idea that Luxembourg had produced any composers for which I feel rather ashamed to admit for why should it not have? His all to brief prelude Dérivantes receives a convincing performance which will have me looking more of Claude Lenners’ music out and the same goes for Cyprus’ Constantinou Stylianou whose piece “…Composition with Yellow and Blue, 1932/Piet Mondrian”, one of his 12 piano preludes is the longest of all 27 works and reveals, through Maria’s gentle fingers a composer of the most ravishingly melodic music.|

This disc, however, also allows us the opportunity to sample the music of less-well-known, or in some cases almost unknown, composers like da Motta, Čiurlionis, the composer-Countess Dora Pejačević, Vladigerov, Ivanovs, Suchoň, Camilleri, Kopač, Lenners and Stylianou. This is where I think such a disc comes into its own as an educator for, if it leads the listener to further explore the music of these countries and its composers, it will have done sterling service. I can vouch for the fact that those who discover the above-listed composers for the first time will be pleasantly surprised. I was very impressed with Maria Lettberg’s previously released disc (review) and I am no less impressed by this release, as her passion for the project is in evidence throughout the disc’s length and her playing is peerless. It is a disc that will reward the listener on every hearing while introducing them to much music that should be better known.

Steve Arloff

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Contents
The Netherlands
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (1562-1621) 
Paduana Lachrimae
Italy
Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757)
Sonata in C major, K159
Austria
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Sonata in F major, K322
Germany
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Sonata in C minor, Op.13 III. Rondo
Ireland
John Field (1782-1837)
Nocturne No.2 in C minor, H25
Poland
Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)
Etude in C minor, Op.10 no.12
Hungary
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Consolation No.3 in D-flat major, S.172
Belgium
César Franck (1822-1890)
Prélude, fugue et variation, Op.18 Prélude (arr. for piano by Harold Bauer (1873-1951)
Czech Republic
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
Humoreske Op.101 no.7
Spain
Issac Albéniz (1860-1909)
Malaguena, Op.165 No.3
France
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Préludes, Livre 2 – No.5 Bruyères. L.123
Finland
Jan Sibelius (1865-1957)
Tanne, Op75 No.5
Denmark
Carl Nielsen (1865-1931)
Humoresque op.3 no.1
Portugal
José Vianna da Motta (1868-1948)
Valsa caprichosa, Op.9 No.3
Lithuania
Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis (1875-1911)
Nocturne C-sharp minor, Op.6 No.2
Romania
George Enescu (1881-1955)
Suite No.3: Melodie
Croatia
Dora Pejačević (1885-1923)
“Ruza” Op.19 No.5
Bulgaria
Pančo Vladigerov (1899-1978)
Suite for piano, Op.51: Quasi rapsodico
Latvia
Jānis Ivanovs (1906-1983)
Valsis
Sweden
Lars-Erik Larsson (1908-1986)
Croquiser, Op.38: Espressivo
Slovakia
Eugen Suchoň (1908-1993)
Small suite with passacaglia Op.3: Preludio
Greece
Mikis Theodorakis (1925-2021)
Melos no.10
Malta
Charles Camilleri (1931-2009)
Due Canti: Cantilena
Estonia
Arvo Pӓrt (b.1935)
Für Alina
Slovenia
Peter Kopač ((b.1949)
Twelve preludes for Piano: No.1 – Con sentiment
Luxembourg
Claude Lenners (b.19560
Dérivantes: Prélude
Cyprus
Constantinos Stylianou (b.1972)
12 Piano Preludes, Book I: II “…Composition with Yellow and Blue, 1932/Piet Mondrian”