SÁNDOR BALASSA (b. 1935)

COMPLETE PIANO MUSIC • 1

ISTVÁN KASSAI

‘I was introduced to the music of Sándor Balassa when I was 12 years old. Years later, the 81-year-old composer kindly put his trust in me and asked me to record all of his piano works. I found a surprising and pleasant diversity in them, more than I had expected, which made me want to play the music even more. Balassa’s lyrical compositional style and his sophisticated application of tone and timbre lends a unique style to all his works. I heartily recommend these works for everyone to listen to or play, as I am certain that everyone will find in them as much pleasure as I did when I was learning them!’ – István Kassai

Listen to an excerpt from
2 Piano Pieces, Op. 137: No. 1. Adagio – Allegretto – Adagio
BALASSA, S.: Piano Music (Complete), Vol. 1
GP803
Sándor Balassa

About this Recording

Distinguished Hungarian composer Sándor Balassa’s philosophy on his music is that it ‘has to be whole, beautiful, interesting and appealing; as natural as if it were this way since the beginning of time, and so that anyone can pick it up with a feeling of joy.’ Balassa’s uniquely sophisticated textures, timbres and lyrical style can be heard here in pieces for young pianists, remarkable works originally written for cimbalom, and in the Baroque references and sweeping momentum of the Szonatina No. 1. This is the first of three volumes of Balassa’s complete piano music.

ÖT TESTVÉR (‘FIVE BROTHERS’), OP. 5
(1960, revised 1994) (08:29)
1
No. 1. Moderato, poco espressivo (01:40)
2
No. 2. Allegretto movimento (00:43)
3
No. 3. Sostenuto, pesante (00:53)
4
No. 4. Allegro ma non troppo (01:26)
5
No. 5. Andante cantabile (03:45)
LEVELEK A REZERVÁTUMBÓL CIMBALOMRA (‘LETTERS FROM THE RESERVATION FOR CIMBALOM’), OP. 87 (2004) (VERSION FOR PIANO) (12:10)
6
No. 1. Moderato (00:44)
7
No. 2. Allegretto (01:26)
8
No. 3. Vivo (01:31)
9
No. 4. Andante (02:20)
10
No. 5. Movimento con moto (01:03)
11
No. 6. Cantabile tranquillo (02:46)
12
No. 7. Presto (02:13)
2 ZONGORADARAB (‘2 PIANO PIECES’), OP. 137 (2014) (06:39)
13
No. 1. Adagio – Allegretto – Adagio (03:53)
14
No. 2. Allegro ma non troppo (02:46)
WORLD PREMIÈRE RECORDING

TOTAL TIME: 72:10

LÁDAFIA (‘FROM AN OLD CHEST’),
VOLUME 1, OP. 113 (2009)
14 KÖNNYŰ ZONGORADARAB
(‘14 EASY PIANO PIECES’) (14:43)
15
No. 1. Pasztorál (‘Pastorale’). Andantino (00:48)
16
No. 2. Allegretto (00:34)
17
No. 3. Üzenet (‘Message’) ♪= 120 (00:50)
18
No. 4. Etűd (‘Etude’). Allegro ma non troppo (00:41)
19
No. 5. Horizont (‘Horizon’). Deciso (01:03)
20
No. 6. Dallam (‘Melody’).
Lento cantablie, poco rubato (00:52)
21
No. 7. Legato. Andante con modo (02:01)
22
No. 8. Kürtök és trombiták (‘Horns and Trumpets’). ♩= 84 – meno mosso – Tempo I (01:08)
23
No. 9. Különös arc (‘A Peculiar Face’).
Allegretto (00:55)
24
No. 10. Nyári könnyű szellő
(‘Light Summer Breeze’). Allegro (00:32)
25
No. 11. Allegro (01:12)
26
No. 12. Szelíden és vadul (‘Gently and Fiercely’). Lento – mosso – ♩= 44 (01:40)
27
No. 13. Egyszerű ének (‘Simple Song’) ♩= 60 (01:03)
28
No. 14. Fürge játék (‘Fast Game’) ♩= 100 (01:14)
LÁDAFIA (‘FROM AN OLD CHEST’), VOLUME 2, OP. 120 (2010)
14 KÖNNYŰ ZONGORADARAB (‘14 EASY PIANO PIECES’) (20:38)
29
No. 1. Prelúdium (‘Prelude’). Adagio (01:49)
30
No. 2. Kicsi (‘Little’). Allegretto (00:32)
31
No. 3. Dombról jövet (‘Coming Down the Hill’).
Largamente (02:07)
32
No. 4. Capriccio ♩= 144 (01:07)
33
No. 5. Borsószem (‘A Pea’). Moderato (01:08)
34
No. 6. Elutasított kérés (‘Request Denied’). Adagio (02:01)
35
No. 7. Csőlátó (‘Tunnel Vision’) ♪= 120 (00:59)
36
No. 8. Barlangban (‘In a Cave’). Sostenuto (01:30)
37
No. 9. Ugróiskola (‘Hopscotch’) ♩= 144 (01:06)
38
No. 10. Kápolna (‘Chapel’). Lento cantabile (01:04)
39
No. 11. Tánczene (‘Dance Music’).
Allegre ma non troppo, giusto (01:37)
40
No. 12. Furcsa pár (‘Strange Couple’).
Allegro moderato (00:46)
41
No. 13. Titkos kert (‘Secret Garden’). Andante (02:47)
42
No. 14. Posztludium (‘Postlude’). Allegro moderato (01:51)
SZONATINA NO. 1 (‘SONATINA NO. 1’), OP. 23, NO. 5
(1961, revised 1996) (09:17)
43
I. Andantino (02:14)
44
II. Marciale, con movimento (01:37)
45
III. Tranquillo cantabile (01:57)
46
IV. Veloce (03:27)
István Kassai

István Kassai

István Kassai graduated as a pianist from the Budapest Academy of Music in 1982 studying in the class of Pál Kadosa. He pursued his second diploma at the Conservatoire Européen de Musique under professor Yvonne Lefébure. He also undertook several master courses, including one led by György Cziffra, who had a great impact on Kassai’s artistic development. During his career, Kassai has won several first prizes in competitions such as the International Piano Competition for Young Artists in Czechoslovakia, and the Paris International Debussy Piano Competition. He has been a full member of the Hungarian Academy of Art since 2013.

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