Hélène de Montgeroult Edna Stern

• Hélène de Montgeroult (1764-1836): Piano Sonata No. 9 in F-Sharp Minor, Op. 5 No. 3:
• 1 I. Allegro spiritoso 10:25
• 2 II. Adagio non troppo 03:32
• 3 III. Presto 05:28
• Fugue No. 1 in F Minor:
• 4 Fugue No. 1 in F Minor 04:14
• Cours complet pour l'enseignement du forté-piano:
• 5 Etude No. 7 in E Minor 01:00
• 6 Etude No. 17 in E-Flat Major 01:36
• 7 Etude No. 19 in F Major 01:09
• 8 Etude No. 37 in G Major 00:49
• 9 Etude No. 26 in G Major 01:28
• 10 Etude No. 28 in E Major 02:20
• 11 Etude No. 55 in F Minor 01:33
• 12 Etude No. 65 in E-Flat Minor 01:07
• 13 Etude No. 66 in C Minor 01:22
• 14 Etude No. 104 in G-Sharp Minor 01:59
• 15 Etude No. 106 in E Major 04:35
• 16 Etude No. 107 in D Minor 01:50
• Thème Varié dans le genre moderne:
• 17 Thème Varié dans le genre moderne 08:50
• Total Runtime 53:17

Info for Hélène de Montgeroult

The rediscovery of Hélène de Montgeroult’s music, notably her Complete course for the instruction of the pianoforte (more than 700 pages, including 114 Etudes, varied themes, fugues, and a fantasy), which can be found in several of the world’s great public libraries, brings to mind Georges Perec’s short story The Winter’s Journey, in which a young man unearths a long-forgotten book that seems to anticipate Symbolist poetry avant la lettre, a book of “plagiarism by anticipation” that will vanish for good later in the story. The difference is that today, Hélène de Montgeroult’s work, still extant, is asserting itself as the missing link between Mozart and Chopin. Her personality, doubtless too modern for her contemporaries – who struggled to understand her audacious chord progressions and her rich and complex polyphony – now sheds light on the French music of the nineteenth century prior to Berlioz, as it touches listeners who are now familiar with the language of Romanticism. She sunk into oblivion soon after her death. However, it is hard to imagine any of the great Romantics (Mendelssohn, Chopin, Liszt, Schumann, even Brahms) not having studied the piano on the basis of her method, who was popular at the time and was graced with a fourth reprint in Germany around 1830. And indeed, who would not think, for example, of Chopin’s “Revolutionary Etude” (Op.10/12) while listening to Montgeroult’s Etude No.107 …

„The story goes that, as an aristocrat in revolutionary Paris, Hélène de Montgeroult was hauled before the Committee of Public Safety but saved herself by sitting at the piano and making up some impressive variations on La Marseillaise. Whether or not that's true, it's baffling that she has been forgotten. The first female teacher at the Paris Conservatoire, she was also, as Jérôme Dorival's research has revealed, a prolific composer whose music was often startlingly ahead of its time. Her Ninth Sonata plus 12 of her many Études and some imaginative variations are played here with warmth and poise by Edna Stern on a historic Pleyel piano. The Études encompass rigorous counterpoint and rhapsodic invention, sometimes simultaneously: No 37 is like Bach's C major Prelude reimagined by Schumann. And Chopin's C minor Étude sounds less Revolutio'ary after you've heard de Montgeroult's swirling Étude No 107, which anticipates it by 20-odd years.“ (Guardian)

“a strikingly individual musical personality. Twelve beguiling studies, a fine “Thème varié dans le genre moderne” and a far from staid F minor fugue complete Stern’s revealing and affectionate recital, given on a silvery 1860 Pleyel.” (Sunday Times)

„When you listen to Edna Stern's moreish disc of Montgeroult's music, it's impossible not to wonder exactly why she's been so neglected. Here is a richly imaginative creative mind, as steeped in the contrapuntal glories of JS Bach as, say, Mendelssohn, yet anticipating Chopin...Stern...trumps Bruno Robilliard and Nicolas Stavy's recordings for colour, style and panache. Textures shimmer in the Etude No. 37, the melody speaks eloquently in No. 26 and in the D minor Op. 107, the shades of Chopin's Revolutionary Etude are made obvious.“ (BBC Music Magazine)

Edna Stern, piano

Edna Stern
“Her piano playing bears the mark of three great pianists who formed her and of whom she managed to create an improbable synthesis: The panache of Martha Argerich, the musicality of Leon Fleisher and the impeccable finish of Krystian Zimerman.” (Diapason Magazine)

Edna Stern began her studies in Israel with Viktor Derevianko, a student of Heinrich Neuhaus. She continued studying with Krystian Zimerman at the Basel Hochschule and with Leon Fleisher at the Peabody Institute and at the Lake Como International Piano Foundation. Her repertoire ranges from Bach to Berio. Her recordings are highly praised by critics, receiving such awards as the Diapason d’Or, Diapason Découverte, Arte Best CD, Gramophone’s Upcoming Artist, and the Sélection Le Monde of best classical CDs for 2010 (Mozart Concerti/Zig-Zag Territoires) and 2014 (Beethoven Sonatas/Luna). She has performed at prestigious halls and festivals such as the Olympia in Paris, the Roque d’Anthéron Festival, the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, Munich’s Hekulessaal, the Colmar International Festival, Paris’ Châtelet Theater, Moscow’s Music-House, Petronas in Kuala Lumpur, and Musashino Hall in Tokyo; she has performed in solo recitals and with orchestras, with conductors such as Claus Peter Flor and Andris Nelsons. Stern gives masterclasses all over the world, including at the CNSM in Paris, Rutgers University, and the Tel-Aviv University’s Zubin Mehta School of Music. She has been a professor at the Royal College of London since 2009 and is the artist in residence at the Théâtre Impérial of Compiègne.

The Imperial Theatre of Compiègne
a jewel of architecture, was built on the request of Napoléon III in 1867 for the purpose of entertaining his court but was inaugurated only in 1991. It is situated just an hour away from Paris and is an extraordinary venue for music, thanks to its outstanding acoustical qualities. Conductor Carlo Maria Giulini considered the hall “as one of the most perfect in the world, and even superior to the Musikverein of Vienna,” known as the standard for concert halls.

The only musical and lyrical venue between Paris and Lille, the Imperial Theatre, under the artistic direction of Eric Rouchaud, has developed since 2009 an ambitious project to strengthen the appreciation and love for music through personal contact and the forging of relationships between the artists and the audience. It is based on a continuous and renewed artistic presence, on artistic collaborations, and on policies supporting artists, especially those of the younger generation. It hosts a wide variety of musical and lyrical projects from baroque to the present (including operas, recitals, chamber and symphonic music, choirs). It grants a significant and major place to the voice, as well as to choreographies, musicals, and other multidisciplinary shows.

In 2014, the Imperial Theatre of Compiègne acquired a new Concert Grand Steinway. This is the piano Edna Stern plays in this recording.

Booklet for Hélène de Montgeroult