• Piano duo Tal & Groethuysen returns with a recording of works by Mendelssohn which he adapted himself from the large-scale chamber and orchestral versions they are usually heard in
• The 19th century was the heyday of the four-handed piano duet, a form of music-making that provided music-lovers with the opportunity to perform orchestral and vocal works in their own home that they could otherwise only hear in the concert hall or on stage. Released in the 200th anniversary year of his birth, Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) was a gifted pianist himself and very fond of domestic music-making. He only wrote a handful of original works for piano duet, but the catalogue of his works contains no fewer than 18 arrangements of his own pieces for four-handed piano, among them two symphonies, a string quartet, several overtures and the entire score of his incidental music for Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’sDream.
• Previous recordings by the duo have been exceptionally well-received by the UK press:
“this renowned piano duo…a fascinating programme…beautifully performed and recorded: it makes a very significant addition to the piano duet repertory” Gramophone on Brahms, Febel, Reger: Choral Preludes (88697121462), released in 2008