This concert by New Zealand pianist Michael Houstoun was recorded at The Piano in Ōtautahi/Christchurch in September 2023 as part of their Sundays at Four recital series. The concert features works by two of the great Romantic composers – Brahms and Rachmaninov.
Michael Houston Photo: RNZ / Rebekah Parsons-King
Brahms completed his Variations & Fugue on a Theme by Handel in Hamburg in 1861 and dedicated it to his close friend Clara Schumann for her birthday. Brahms wrote it at the height of his powers and it’s been described as one of the summits of his entire keyboard output.
The theme Brahms chose was the Air from Handel’s B flat major harpsichord suite. Handel had written it in 1733 and it’s described in the programme notes for this concert as a ‘cheerful dance-like theme decorated with ample Baroque ornamentation.’ The 25 variations on this theme that Brahms composed are full of youthful eloquence and wit, irony, and explore a wide range of moods and characters.
Michael Houstoun chose a selection of preludes and etudes by Rachmaninov for the second part of this concert.
Rachmaninov wrote some of these relatively early in his career, and others later, once his voice as a composer had matured. Rachmaninov avoided giving descriptive titles to his pieces but, apparently, liked composing with a picture, a story, a scene, or a poem in mind which he liked to try to convert into tones without disclosing the source of his inspiration.
Producer/Engineer: Darryl Stack
Recorded at The Piano, Ōtautahi/Christchurch, 24 September 2023
