LDV100

27 MICHEL DALBERTO The Études d’exécution transcendante that I’ve selected are among my favourites. In Ricordanza (Recollection) I see a pre-Proustian search for lost time. Mazeppa , on the other hand, comes across as a demonstrative, spectacular narrative – not for nothing was Victor Hugo so pleased to receive the dedication from Liszt – although it’s probably not the most difficult of the twelve études, at least from a technical point of view, unlike the formidable demands of Feux follets . Chasse- neige , the twelfth piece in the cycle – its title refers to a wind that raises whirls of snow – is written in Liszt’s ‘pre-Debussian’ style, but it’s also quite Mahlerian in its avant-garde chromaticism. It’s an impressive piece, but hard to listen to, as it calls for a certain degree of concentration. Finally, the third étude, Paysage (landscape), isn’t really an étude at all! When I play all twelve Études d’exécution transcendante , I usually put it at the end, as a sort of wink to the audience, closing the recital in a mood of tranquillity after so much ‘heroism’ and virtuosity . . .