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William Kapell. Leader of the new guard of American pianists. The Australian Concerts

Posted: May 13, 2008

William Kapell's 'The Australian Concerts' features Five Works New to Kapell's Discography: Prokofiev's Sonata No. 7, Debussy's Suite bergamasque, Chopin's Barcarolle, Op. 60 & Scherzo No. 1, Op. 20, Kapell's Rendition of "God Save the Queen"

A virtuoso pianist of the mid-twentieth century, William Kapell was an important link to early-twentieth century giants such as Horowitz and Rubinstein and the leader of the new guard of American pianists represented by Van Cliburn, Gary Graffman, and Leon Fleisher. Brooding good looks and explosive interpretations of Russian piano literature made him a star. His death in a plane crash at the age of 31 put an end to a career marked by fiery personality, technical mastery, and unstinting devotion to his craft. Many considered him the first virtuoso American pianist - certainly the most famous one until Van Cliburn - whose early death denied him more enduring popularity. These recordings are a stirring reminder of the talent upon which his fame rested during his lifetime.

These recordings, which first came to attention in 2004 with an article in The New York Times, include Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3, Bach's Suite in A Minor, BWV818, Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition, Mozart's Sonata in B-flat, K. 570, and Chopin's Nocturne, Op. 55 No. 2, in E-flat, plus five works Kapell never previously released: Debussy's Suite bergamasque, Chopin's Barcarolle and Scherzo No. 1 in B Minor, Prokofiev's Sonata No. 7, and "God Save the Queen." These selections are taken from live performances recorded during his final three-month tour of Australia in 1953, shortly before his death.

By the time William Kapell (1922-1953) undertook his 37-concert tour of Australia in 1953, he had already begun to stretch his artistic horizons. Early fame branded him as a lion of the Russian repertory - he first won acclaim with Khachaturian's Piano Concerto - but he yearned to shed this image. His tireless artistic ambitions took him to Mozart, Bach, Schubert, Beethoven, and Debussy, and he fruitfully explored structure, line, and atmosphere in the works of these composers. Kapell demonstrated the uncompromising zeal of a practitioner who was as disciplined as he was gifted. The benefits to his technical armory are on thrilling display in these recordings.

The lavish digipak packaging for this release features liner notes by Pulitzer Prize-winning music critic Tim Page, who considers the recordings, "magnificent playing by any standard and a colossal enhancement to our understanding of William Kapell." The public owes the existence of this important recorded document to Roy Preston, a Melbourne, Australia department store salesman who passionately and obsessively made home recordings of radio broadcasts. Page puts Preston's remarkable contribution in the context of its time:

"It is nothing less than extraordinary that they should have come to light all these years later: back in 1953, the vast majority of live renditions - even those by the most celebrated of artists - vanished immediately into thin air. Today, at a time when any radio or television program will be recorded by thousands of people and perhaps even put out over the internet, it is difficult to conceive of how elusive such permanence once was."

This digitally remastered two-disc set - the latest in Sony BMG Masterworks' reDiscovered series - compiles performances from four of the concerts on Kapell's tour of Australia and makes them available for the first time as a lasting tribute to the incredible talent and influence of William Kapell.

RCA Red Seal, Sony Classical, deutsche harmonia mundi, Masterworks Broadway and Masterworks Jazz are labels of Sony BMG Masterworks. For email updates and information regarding RCA Red Seal, Sony Classical, deutsche harmonia mundi, Masterworks Broadway and Masterworks Jazz artists, promotions, tours and repertoire, please visit www.sonybmgmasterworks.com