Ginastera: Danzas Argentinas, Piano Sonata 1, Suite de danzas criollas, 3 Pieces François-Xavier Poizat

• Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983): Danzas argentinas, Op. 2
• 1 I. Danza del viejo boyero (Animato allegro) 01:18
• 2 II. Danza de la moza donosa (Dolcemente espressivo) 03:27
• 3 III. Danza del gaucho matrero (Furiosamente ritmico e energico) 02:59
• 4 IV. Milonga (Lento) 02:43
• Piano Sonata No. 1, Op. 22
• 5 I. Allegro marcato 04:16
• 6 II. Presto misterioso 02:32
• 7 III. Adagio molto appasionato 05:45
• 8 IV. Ruvido ed ostinato 02:33
• Suite de danzas criollas, Op. 15
• 9 I. Adagietto pianissimo 01:29
• 10 II. Allegro rustico 00:36
• 11 III. Allegretto cantabile 01:38
• 12 IV. Calme e poetico 01:35
• 13 V. Scherzando-Coda. Presto ed energico 02:09
• 3 Pieces, Op. 6
• 14 I. Cuyana 03:31
• 15 II. Nortena 03:54
• 16 III. Criolla 03:50
• Federico Mompou (1893-1987)
• 17 Prelude No. 5 (Moderato, Dolce cantabile) 02:01
• Total Runtime 46:16

Info for Ginastera: Danzas Argentinas, Piano Sonata 1, Suite de danzas criollas, 3 Pieces

This new recording contains a representative selection of piano works by Argentinan composer Alberto Ginastera (19161983). His piano works brim with LatinAmerican passion: brutal, sensual, evocative, sentimental, always filled with the vibrant rhythms and colours of the folk music and dances of his home country. Included are the popular Danzas Argentinas, the substantial and serious first Piano Sonata, the atmospheric 3 Pieces and Suite de danzas criollas.

Francois Xavier Poizat is a young Swiss pianist “gifted with a deep lyricism and a stunning virtuosity” (Martha Argerich). He won already several international competitions, among which a “Special Jury Prize” at the prestigious Tchaikovsky Competition 2011.

“If the strenuous piano writing often seems more like bluster and posturing than genuinely felt music, it’s in the early sets of smaller pieces around the sonata that Poizat’s stylish playing reveals more of Ginastera’s real musical character.” (The Guardian)

Francois Xavier Poizat, piano

Francois Xavier Poizat
Trained within the Russian school by Alexeï Golovine in Geneva and Evgenij Koroliov in Hamburg, and now with Nelson Goerner, the pianist is described by Martha Argerich as “a very talented young pianist with a remarkable virtuosity and deep lyricism” and by Boris Berezovsky as “an excellent musician with high virtuosity”. Born in 1989, the French-Swiss pianist began his career at the age of 12 when the great Argentinian pianist invited him to Japan to play for the “Pacific Music Festival”.

Since then he has performed in various other festivals, in Switzerland, France, Germany, Russia, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Canada, China and Japan : La Roque d’Anthéron (France), the Progetto Martha Argerich in Lugano, the Schubertiade in Porrentruy, the Septembre Musical de Montreux, with orchestras like the Orchestre National du Capitole, the Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, or with the Poznan Philharmonic, under the batons of maestros like Neeme Järvi, Philippe Béran, Lukasz Borowicz, Thierry Fischer or Frédéric Chaslin.

François-Xavier Poizat won great recognition in the world of international competitions, when winning, among others, the Grand Prix of the 11th “International Wettbewerb : romantische Sterne” in Kassel (DE), 2004, the “Prix Jeune Soliste 2007” from the Public French-speaking Radios, the First Prize (all instruments) in the 5th “Internationaler Musikwettbewerb für die Jugend” in Oldenburg (DE) or the First Prize in the “Elise Meyer” Competition in Hamburg (DE) in 2009.

The pianist created a sensation in the famous “Tchaikovsky Competition” in Moscow (2011) by winning the “Jury Special Prize”, becoming the first Swiss pianist in history to be a prizewinner in this legendary competition. After earning the Migros Cultural Percentage “Solist Prize” (2012), he was a finalist of the Clara Haskil Competition in Vevey (September 2013).

Beside his activity as a pianist, François-Xavier Poizat is also the artistic director of the International “Puplinge Classique” Festival in Geneva. He has already published three CDs, available on the international market : Xaver Scharwenka’s 4thConcerto with the Poznan Philharmonic under the label “NAXOS” in the famous “Romantic Piano Concertos” series (2009), transcriptions for piano from orchestral pieces under the Label “Ars Produktion” (2013), and pieces from Alberto Ginastera under the label “Pianoclassics” (2015).

He received the “Leenaard’s Foundation” scolarship (2007) and the Prix d’Etude Migros (2011 and 2012). Aside from classical music, he plays Jazz with passion and has attended martial arts classes for more than 13 years.

This album contains no booklet.