Leslie Howard's Liszt series on Hyperion.

[Solitary Wanderer]

Theres over 50 titles in Leslie Howards Liszt series on the Hyperion label.

I've been listening to some samples and they are quite lovely.

With so many to choose from I'm wondering if anyone here is familiar with them and can offer some suggestions for a starting point.

[Lethevich]

The main reason to go for a Howard disc would be due to the works being unrecorded elsewhere, generally I've never seen him as a top rec for Liszt's mainstream works.

Edit: Hmm, what an unhelpful post

[Wanderer]

I have a number of Leslie Howard's Liszt discs from early in my collecting days. Not generally exceptional, but quite good for exploring rather unknown or not widely recorded repertoire. The ones I can recommend are:


Rather obscure but very enjoyable transcriptions, very well played and recorded.


The first - even more virtuosic -  versions of the Hungarian Rhapsodies.

The 3 3-disc volumes of Schubert transciptions are worthy of consideration, as well as the opera transcriptions sets ("Liszt at the opera"), especially vol.1, which includes the magnificent Réminiscences de Norma (after Bellini) and Réminiscences de Don Juan (after Mozart's Don Giovanni).



Worthy of consideration, the music is contemplative in nature.


This comes most highly recommended. It includes the highly entertaining Hexaméron ("Grandes Variations de Bravoure pour piano sur la marche des Puritains de Bellini"),  - a joint compositional venture with variations contributed by Thalberg, Pixis, Czerny, Chopin and Liszt himself - and a transcription of Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique.

These are the ones I can think of at the moment. Avoid the two sets with the piano concertos and the other concertante works.

[Wanderer]

I wonder if anyone could give his/her impressions on these two...



One would think that Hyperion would offer the series at mid-price after all these years. Maybe a Helios or Brilliant reissue is forthcoming?

[Lethevich]

The 3 3-disc volumes of Schubert transciptions are worthy of consideration, as well as the opera transcriptions sets ("Liszt at the opera"), especially vol.1, which includes the magnificent Réminiscences de Norma (after Bellini) and Réminiscences de Don Juan (after Mozart's Don Giovanni).

Those two works are contained in the Decca Bolet box (finally, an excuse to recommend it! ) along with a Rigoletto paraphrase. It has some Schubert song transcriptions and a lot of misc. stuff. It's almost pointless to mention it, as everybody will know it, but on the off-chance that SW doesn't own it yet - it's essential...

[Josquin des Prez]

Did he really have to record all the alternative versions, early drafts, and piano fragments? Liszt's output is already confusing as it is...

[Brian]

Theres over 50 titles in Leslie Howards Liszt series on the Hyperion label.

Dude, in that case the whole set would cost over $1100.