This new recording presents selected piano works of Fryderyk Chopin, and the return of pianist Marek Szlezer to, as he himself writes, the "piano house", which for him is the oeuvre of one of the most famous composers in the world.
This album features many different compositions, starting with the incredibly well known, such as the Polonaise in A Major, Op. 40 or Mazurkas from Op. 59, through the extremely popular Nocturnes, to later works crowning the composer's output, such as his famous Ballade in F Minor, Op. 52. The last two pieces are a curio the unfinished Prelude No. 27 in E-Flat Minor, Op. posth., partially reconstructed by Szlezer, and the song Spring, Op. 74 No. 2, one of Chopin's songs arranged for piano by the composer himself.
Marek Szlezer has performed in such prestigious concert halls as Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw, Wigmore Hall, Palais des Beaux-Arts, St.Martin-in-the-fields, Salle Cortot, Seoul Arts Center, NCPA and Palacio de Bellas Artes. In October 2005, during the opening gala concert for the Queen Elisabeth's Foundation in Belgium, he performed a Mozart's concerto accompanied by the English Chamber Orchestra.
Szlezer's performances of Frederic Chopin's music have won him numerous prizes: 1st Prize at the National Chopin Competition in Warsaw, 3rd Prize at the Chopin International Piano Competition in Marienbad, a special prize of the Chopin National Edition. He had the honour to play a concert on Chopin's original piano at the Jagiellonian University on the night Poland entered the European Union. In occasion of composers 205th birthday he has performed a concert at Carnegie Hall in New York.
Szlezer has recorded several albums for Warner Music, Dux, EMI, Amadeus and Moderato Classics receiving an enthusiastic critical acclaim in prestigious musical magazines (among others Gramophone, Kulturspiegel, The Strad, Fanfare, American Record's Guide). For the CD's with music of Chopin, Szymanowski, Tansman, Kilar and Penderecki he has received the French music critics awards La Clef de ResMusica as well as Gramophone Editor's Choice, 5 du Diapason, Global Music Awards Outstanding Achievement and various nominations for other phonographic prizes (i.e. Polish Phonographic Awards FRYDERYK). In 2017 his CD has been selected by Hi-fi music magazine as one of the best recordings of the year.
