Pianist, conductor and musicologist Pietro Spada recorded a CD for the ASV label with the piano works of the Italian composer Alfredo Catalani (1854-1893). Catalani was a friend and protégé of Arturo Toscanini. In terms of style, his works for piano are the closest to the Lyrical pieces of Edvard Grieg. He is also considered a forerunner of the French Impressionists. Ten short works were given
… the collective name: Impressioni, but have meaningful subtitles such as: In sogno, In gondola, Sans-souci and Canto di primavera. He also made two transcriptions for piano of his own orchestral works such as Contemplazione and Danza delle Ondine from his famous opera Loreley. The ASV label will probably release even more interesting CDs with 19th century Italian piano music. (LW) _more
