Often infused with Parisian joie de vivre and the subtle humour of Les Six, Vittorio Rieti’s works for solo piano are refreshingly unstuffy and accessible. His piano concertos share that lightness of touch while also probing a wider emotional spectrum.
‘When I discovered the music of Vittorio Rieti, I was surprised by the beauty of his largely unknown piano concertos. The music is full of great liveliness, joy, rhythm, and brilliance—certainly deserving of a place in the great repertoire for piano and orchestra. During the recording, I also noticed a high degree of satisfaction on the part of the orchestra, which not only accompanies the piano solo but also features challenging solo passages for individual instruments in dialogue with the piano, all presented in a very original, brilliant and unpredictable style.’
– Alessandro Marangoni, piano soloist
Vittorio RIETI (1898–1994)
Piano Concertos
Alessandro Marangoni, Orazio Sciortino, PianosOrchestra Sinfonica di Milano
Giuseppe Grazioli
Dedicated to Francis Poulenc, Vittorio Rieti’s First Piano Concerto formed part of his early success in Paris during the 1920s, the work’s high spirits reflecting Rieti’s recent marriage and the birth of his son Fabio. The Second Piano Concerto started out as a harpsichord concerto for Wanda Landowska but was later recast. The Third Piano Concerto is notable for its deeply felt central Andantino, while the Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra is exuberant with cinematic themes. All of these works feature witty passages for orchestral soloists in dialogue with the piano, imbued with Rieti’s original and unpredictable style.
III. Allegro
Pianist Alessandro Marangoni, winner of several national and international awards that include an International Classical Music Award and the Franco Abbiati Prize, has appeared throughout Europe, America and China as a soloist and a chamber musician. He is artistic director of Almo Collegio Borromeo in Pavia and professor of piano at the Conservatorio Guido Cantelli in Novara. His recordings for Naxos include albums of works by Rossini, Clementi and Castelnuovo-Tedesco.
Pianist, composer and conductor Orazio Sciortino was nominated as Composer of the Year at the 2024 International Classical Music Awards. He collaborates with major musical institutions in Italy and abroad, including Teatro alla Scala, MITO SettembreMusica, Teatro La Fenice, Festival dei Due Mondi di Spoleto, Bologna Festival, Sociedad Filarmónica de Lima, Konzerthaus Berlin, Megaron Athens Concert Hall and Orquesta de València. He is a professor and head of the piano department at Brescia Conservatory.
Conductor Giuseppe Grazioli specialises in recording lesser-known music from his native Italy, with extensive experience as a conductor of both orchestral music and opera. With a large repertory of classical, romantic and contemporary music, he has conducted many rare Italian operas as well as the world premiere of Marco Tutino’s opera Vita with the Orchestra della Scala. In 2019, he became the principal conductor and casting manager of the Opéra de Saint-Étienne in France.
Founded in 1993, the Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano was initially based in the Sala Verdi of the Milan Conservatory before eventually finding a permanent home in the Milan Auditorium, which they inaugurated in October 1999 with a performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 ‘Resurrection’, conducted by Riccardo Chailly. Other distinguished guest conductors have included Carlo Maria Giulini, Peter Maag, Georges Prêtre, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Helmuth Rilling and Riccardo Muti.
Complete Piano Solo & Duo Works • 2
Koukl • Rossetti
– AllMusic.com ★★★★★
Complete Piano Solo & Duo Works • 1
Koukl • Rossetti
– MusicWeb International
– ClassicsToday.com
Piano Concertos Nos. 1 and 2
Four Dances for ‘Love’s Labour’s Lost’
Marangoni
Malmö Symphony Orchestra
Mogrelia
– International Record Review