Schubert:
36 Originaltänze, Op. 9, D. 365
38 Waltzes, Ländler and Ecossaises, Op. 18, D. 145
18 German Dances and Ecoissaises, Op. 33, D. 783
Galop and 8 Ecoissaises, D. 735
Valses sentimentales, Op. 50, D. 779
17 Ländler, D. 366
4 Ländler, D. 814
Wiener-Damen Ländler und Ecoissaisen, Op. 67, D. 734
12 Valses Nobles Op.77, D. 969
12 Grazer Waltzes, Op. 91, D. 924
20 Waltzes, Op. 127, D. 146
12 German Dances, Op. 171, D. 790

Star pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard presents Ländler, a collection of delightful dances composed by Franz Schubert. Rustic and cheerful, these miniatures display a fascinating side of Schubert’s musical persona. Their simplicity is deceptive, as these dances are frequently shaken up by Schubert’s harmonic wandering soul, yet remaining lyrical, picturesque and tuneful. For Aimard, there is a kinship between Schubert’s Ländler and Kurtág’s Játékok, pieces that he often performs side by side, sharing a combination of playfulness and Modernism that also calls the great twentieth-century miniaturist Anton Webern to mind. By avoiding almost any repetition, Aimard evokes a sleepwalker’s journey rather than a series of dances. A renowned champion of twentieth-century music, Pierre-Laurent Aimard has released multiple acclaimed albums in his exclusive contract with Pentatone, including Messiaen’s Catalogue d’Oiseaux (2018) and Visions de l’Amen (2022), along with Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata & Eroica Variations (2021). He also joined Tamara Stefanovich in Etudes and Frames (2023), with music by Vassos Nicolaou, and recorded Bartók's Piano Concertos with the San Francisco Symphony and Esa-Pekka Salonen (2023).