John McCabe has had one of the most distinguished and diverse careers in British music, as a pianist, composer, writer and educator.

His unusually wide sympathies as a performer cover music from the Elizabethan era to the present day, with landmark recordings of Haydn (the complete piano sonatas) and Nielsen.

The works presented on this CD, carefully chosen by McCabe for his last public recital, given at the Presteigne Festival last August, include music by Schubert and Ravel as well as a work of his own and two pieces by younger contemporaries.

The two new works – by John Casken and Emily Howard – are first recordings. The CD also contains the first recording of the substantial Tenebrae by the composer himself.

This CD is being launched during this year’s Presteigne Festival and will be released nationally shortly afterwards.

John McCabe was born in Liverpool on 21 April 1939 to a family of Irish-Scottish and German-Finnish descent, although his outlook has always remained decidedly English.

His output includes nine symphonies and a substantial body of music for his own instrument, the piano.