Leon Fleisher

A fixture on the music scene for more than six decades, pianist Leon Fleisher releases his first two-hand concerto recording in 40 years.

The new recording is comprised of a trio of Mozart concertos recorded with the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra: no. 23 in A Major, K. 488; no. 12 in A Major, K. 414; and no. 7 in F Major for two pianos, K. 242, for which he is joined by his wife Katherine Jacobson-Fleisher. Founded in 1945, the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra has held a top position in the international orchestral world for more than 60 years. Under founder and director Karl Mnchinger, the ensemble had developed and cultivated the repertoire of the Viennese Classicists.

Leon Fleisher (1928 - ) was born in San Francisco. He had his piano debut at the age of eight, began studies with Artur Schnabel at nine, made his San Francisco Symphony debut at 14, then he had his Carnegie Hall debut at 16 playing with the New York Philharmonic under Pierre Monteux. He won the prestigious Queen Elisabeth Piano Competition in Belgium in 1952, became one of the most sought-after soloists and recitalists in the world's finest concert halls, and began a rich series of recordings with, among others, Georg Szell and The Cleveland Orchestra. His landmark version of Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms concertos as well as his solo recordings of Schubert and his explorations of the American repertory would become cult classics. In 1965, he was cruelly sidelined at the height of his powers by a rare neurological disease that lost him the use of his right hand. Undeterred, while being told by his doctors that he would never play again, he became an inspirational teacher and conductor, all the while playing-and in fact revitalizing-the left-handed repertory, determined not to be defeated.

Leon Fleisher's great career was cut short early by his debilitating illness at the age of 37 and so any recording featuring his distinguished playing is important. These WDR sourced recordings are rare because they showcase Fleisher in a 'live' studio broadcast (almost all his recordings were in the studio with George Szell for Sony during the 1950's and early 1960's).

Here is partnered in two of Beethoven's most popular concertos by two of the most distinguished conductors of the period, Otto Klemperer and Hans Rosbaud.

Klemperer's performance of Gluck's Iphegenie aus Aulis Overture from the same concert on 27 February 1956 has been added in as a bonus.

This is the first authorized release of these recordings in superb sound using WDR's original master tapes.

Ondine is proud to announce the first ever commercial recording of a long lost major work by Paul Hindemith, the Klaviermusik mit Orchester for piano left-hand and orchestra. The New York Times has called it, "a fantastic work that requires tremendous technique and stamina."

Hindemith wrote this concerto in 1923 for the one-armed pianist Paul Wittgenstein. Wittgenstein never performed it and it was only upon the death of his widow in 2002 that the piece was discovered in a farmhouse in Pennsylvania. It received an acclaimed 2004 world première in Berlin, with piano legend Leon Fleisher as soloist together with the Berlin Philharmonic under Sir Simon Rattle. Leon Fleisher, one of the most prominent specialists of left-hand repertoire, is also the soloist on this recording. The Curtis Institute of Music expresses its deep appreciation to the Neubauer Family Foundation, which has made possible and underwritten this recording of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra.

Renowned pianist, conductor and teacher Leon Fleisher had made numerous benchmark recordings, including the piano concertos of Beethoven, Brahms, Grieg, Schumann and Rachmaninov, when, in 1965, two fingers of his right hand became immobile. He was forced to retire when only 37 years old.This was the defining moment in his career until the late 1990s, when he began botox treatments that finally helped relieve the neurological affliction known as 'focal dystonia.' Fleisher has been playing infrequently with both hands again and in 2004 made his first two-hand recording in 40 years. In the intervening years he followed two parallel careers - as conductor and teacher - while learning to play the extensive but limiting repertoire of compositions for piano left-hand.

Held in high esteem by the world's foremost orchestras and opera houses for his commanding presence, versatility, and consummate musicianship, Christoph Eschenbach has also been acclaimed for his creative insight and dynamic energy, as a pianist, conductor and ardent champion of young musicians. Herbert von Karajan was his mentor for nearly 25 years and he credits him as having had a tremendous influence on his development as a conductor. In autumn 2010, he will assume the music directorship of the National Symphony Orchestra and the specially created position of music director of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, both in Washington, D.C. Eschenbach has had a long and continuing association with the Curtis Institute of Music, working closely with its conducting, composition, and general student body, as well as conducting the Curtis Symphony Orchestra on a regular basis, an orchestra about whom the Philadelphia Inquirer acclaimed "… any city would be lucky to have as its professional ensemble". The Curtis Institute of Music trains exceptionally gifted young musicians for careers as performing artists on the highest professional level. One of the world's leading music schools, Curtis provides full-tuition scholarships to all of its 162 students, ensuring that admissions are based solely on artistic promise.