NOTTURNO
FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN
ELIANE RODRIGUES
OVERVIEW
Navona Records’ NOTTURNO: The Complete Nocturnes and Ballades of Chopin is a fresh look at some of the Polish composer’s most expressive works. The nocturnes and ballades are also some of Chopin’s most innovative works, displaying exciting advancements in harmony, rhythm, and form—all renewed in pianist Eliane Rodrigues’s nuanced, thoughtful performances, recorded in Sacilie, Italy’s acoustically advanced Fazioli Concert Hall.
Although he didn’t invent the piano nocturne, Chopin popularized it and certainly improved it beyond a mere character piece. He was heavily influenced by the sensuous melodies of bel canto opera arias, and developed a freer sense of rhythm and expression—as a result, the nocturnes exude an abstract mood or atmosphere. Chopin did, however, invent the piano ballade—a genre with its own distinct forms and qualities. His four ballades most directly contrast the nocturnes in their abstract narrative style—very different from “mood” pieces, they were likely inspired by poems by Adam Mickiewicz.
Taking a page from Chopin’s own unwritten ballade narratives, Rodrigues includes text by Jantien Brys to accompany each nocturne, each one telling a sort of story without sacrificing the essential atmospheric nature of the nocturne. She writes, “For me, the Nocturnes are like a diary of Chopin, so Jantien wrote the texts as if they were excerpts from a fictional diary of his.” Rodrigues’s performances, influenced by these new texts, bring the listener a new kind of emotional connection to Chopin and music.
HIGHLIGHTS
Eliane Rodrigues was born in Rio de Janeiro, where she began composing at three, played her first recital at five, and performed with an orchestra at six. From there, she won prizes at age 18 at the Van Cliburn Competition in the United States and was a laureate at the 1983 Queen Elisabeth Competition.
Rodrigues has a truly international performing presence. She has performed in Antwerp, Brussels, The Hague, Moscow, New York, Rio de Janeiro, St. Petersburg, Volgograd, Zürich, and elsewhere. In 1998, she was the leading artist at the Música Romântica music festival in Switzerland, featured as performer, conductor, and composer.
Rodrigues makes her home in the Netherlands, where, in Rotterdam, she gives an annual Chopin recital at De Doelen on the day after Christmas. She is currently professor at the Royal Conservatoire of Antwerp, where she has taught for many years.
Rodrigues has produced over 25 CDs featuring live and studio recordings. These include recordings of Prokofiev’s five piano concertos and several Beethoven works, including recent recordings of all of his piano concertos in St. Petersburg.
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Eliane Rodrigues
Release Date: October 13, 2017
Catalog #: NV6123
TRACK LISTING
FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN
ELIANE RODRIGUES PIANO
DISC 1
01 NOCTURNE 1 - Op.9 No.1 in B-fl at minor - Larghetto
02 NOCTURNE 2 - Op.9 No.2 in E-fl at major - Andante
03 NOCTURNE 3 - Op.9 No.3 in B major - Allegretto
04 NOCTURNE 4 - Op.15 No.1 in F major - Andante cantabile
05 NOCTURNE 5 - Op.15 No.2 in F-sharp major - Larghetto
06 NOCTURNE 6 - Op.15 No.3 in G minor - Lento
07 NOCTURNE 7 - Op.27 No.1 in C-sharp minor - Larghetto
08 NOCTURNE 8 - Op.27 No.2 in D-fl at major - Lento sostenuto
09 NOCTURNE 9 - Op.32 No.1 in B major - Andante sostenuto
10 NOCTURNE 10 - Op.32 No.2 in A-fl at major - Lento
11 NOCTURNE 11 - Op.37 No.1 in G minor - Lento sostenuto
12 BALLADE No.1 in G minor, Op.23
DISC 2
01 NOCTURNE 12 - Op.37 No.2 in G major - Andantino
02 NOCTURNE 13 - Op.48 No.1 in C minor - Lento
03 NOCTURNE 14 - Op.48 No.2 in F-sharp minor - Andantino
04 NOCTURNE 15 - Op.55 No.1 in F minor - Andante
05 NOCTURNE 16 - Op.55 No.2 in E-fl at major - Lento sostenuto
06 NOCTURNE 17 - Op.62 No.1 in B major - Andante
07 NOCTURNE 18 - Op.62 No.2 in E major - Lento
08 NOCTURNE 19 - Op.post.72 No.1 in E minor - Andante
09 NOCTURNE 20 - Op.post. in C-sharp minor - Lento con gran espressione
10 NOCTURNE 21 - Op.post. in C minor - Andante sostenuto
11 BALLADE No.4 in F minor, Op.52
BONUS TRACKS
-Digital Only-
CREDITS
Recorded February 27-28, 2017 at the
Fazioli Concert Hall in Sacile (Italy)
Fazioli concert grand F278
Artistic Director Florian Heyerick
Recording, editing & acoustical modelling
Gregor Antes - laborantes.com
In collaboration with
Executive Producer Bob Lord
Executive A&R Sam Renshaw
A&R Chris Robinson
Audio Director Jeff LeRoy
Mastering Lucas Paquette
Design & Marketing Director Brett Picknell
Design Emily Roulo
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