Frédéric Chopin - Origins (Edouardo Torbianelli)

Information

Composer: Frédéric Chopin

1. Mazurka in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 6 No. 2
2. Polonaise in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 26 No. 1
3. Nocturne in F-Sharp Minor, Op. 48 No. 2
4. Mazurka in B Minor, Op. 30 No. 2
5. Polonaise in F-Sharp Minor, Op. 44
6. Mazurka in B Major, Op. 56 No. 1
7. Prelude in E Major, Op. 28 No. 9
8. Polonaise in A-Flat Major, Op. 53
9. Prelude in C Minor, Op. 28 No. 20
10. Nocturne in C Minor, Op. 48 No. 1
11. Mazurka in F Minor, Op. 63 No. 2
12. Mazurka in F Minor, Op. 7 No. 3
13. Nocturne in F Minor, Op. 55 No. 1
14. Mazurka in A Minor, B. 134 "Notre temps"
15. Mazurka in C Major, Op. 33 No. 3
16. Fantaisie in F Minor, Op. 49
17. Mazurka in A-Flat Major, Op. 59 No. 2

Edouardo Torbianelli, piano

Date: 2026

Label: harmonia mundi

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Edoardo Torbianelli’s research and recording project highlights how Fryderyk Chopin’s compositional framework, particularly his mazurkas and polonaises, remains intimately bound to authentic Polish folk idioms and early 19th-century improvisational practices. By using an period-appropriate 1842 Pleyel piano from the Paris Musée de la Musique, Torbianelli demonstrates how historical touch, light action, and subtle tonal shading uncover rhythmic nuances, modal harmonies, and ornamental flexibility often obscured on modern concert grands. His findings suggest Chopin's music is not merely stylized salon art, but a direct, living extension of traditional Polish folk music and spontaneous improvisation.

Pianist and scholar Edoardo Torbianelli is a leading authority on 18th- and 19th-century performance practice, renowned for his work on historical keyboard instruments. A prominent international soloist, chamber musician, and improviser, he has performed globally and recorded extensively for acclaimed labels, earning prestigious honors including three Diapason d’Or awards and the Hungarian Liszt Society Medal. Highly regarded for his expertise in period piano technique, Torbianelli has held professorships at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis since 1998, the Bern University of the Arts since 2008, and the Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional de Paris, alongside past appointments at the Sorbonne and the Abbaye de Royaumont.

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