Pierre-Laurent Aimard, San Francisco Symphony & Esa-Pekka Salonen - Bartók: Piano Concertos (2023)

Pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard joins forces with the San Francisco Symphony and Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen for a recording of Bartók’s complete piano concertos. A pianist himself, Bartók imbued his three concertos with multiple aspects of his compositional persona, ranging from complex and innovative (the First) to exuberant (the Second) and serene (the Third). The result is a fascinating slice of his musical life. This all-Bartók release marks the first Pentatone collaboration between Esa-Pekka Salonen and the San Francisco Symphony, an ensemble he has reshaped through creative performance concepts and expansive new media projects.

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. Salonen returns to the label for the first time since his recording of Stravinsky’s Perséphone (2018); the San Francisco Symphony previously appeared on the 2005 Pentatone release Young America.

Tracklist
01. Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 1 in A Major, Sz. 83: I. Allegro moderato — Allegro
02. Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 1 in A Major, Sz. 83: II. Andante — attacca
03. Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 1 in A Major, Sz. 83: III. Allegro molto
04. Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Major, Sz. 95: I. Allegro
05. Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Major, Sz. 95: II. Adagio — Presto — Più adagio
06. Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Major, Sz. 95: III. Allegro molto
07. Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 3 in E Major, Sz. 119: I. Allegretto
08. Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 3 in E Major, Sz. 119: II. Adagio religioso
09. Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 3 in E Major, Sz. 119: III. Allegro vivace