Prima Facie Records

Romantic Piano Encores (PFCD160) £12.50/£17.50

Kenneth Hamilton – piano

An Official Classical Chart Top10 Recording
An AllMusic Editor’s Choice Recording
A Music Web International Recording of the Month
A Klassik Heute Recommended Recording

1. J. S. Bach/Alexander Siloti: Prelude in b minor (2’49”)
2. John Dowland/Percy Grainger: “Now, O now, I needs must part” (3’46”)
3. J. S. Bach/Charles Valentin Alkan: Siciliano (2’03”)
4. Felix Mendelssohn: Fantasy on the Irish Air “The Last Rose of Summer” (7’19”)
5. Percy Grainger: Irish Tune from County Derry (3’38”)
6. Robert Schumann/Franz Liszt: Widmung (3‘24“)
7. Richard Strauss/Percy Grainger: Rosenkavalier Ramble (6’42”)
8. Percy Grainger: Colonial Song (5’51”)
9. Johann Strauß/Ignaz Friedman: Voices of Spring Waltz (9’39”)
10. Edward Elgar: In Smyrna (3’35“)
11. Camille Saint-Saëns/Lawrence Glover: The Swan* (2’09”)
12. Ignaz Paderewski: Nocturne in Bb major, op. 16 no. 4 (4’00”)
13. Peter Tchaikovsky/Sergei Rachmaninov: Lullaby (4’50”)
14. Leopold Godowsky: Symphonic Metamorphosis on Johann Strauss’s ‘Artist’s Life’ Waltz (14’55”)
* First Recording
Total running time: 74’46”

"Hamilton’s fondness for the extreme outer edges of the piano repertoire brings a sense of spice and adventure to this recital… you can feel his love for these often complex arrangements" Andrew McGregor, BBC Radio 3 Record Review.

"The playing is stunning, from first note to the last. Every track here is a winner…a splendidly imaginative programme that interests, inspires and amazes." John France, Musicweb International

"a treasure trove of sound - beautifully shaped performances of music both well-known and awaiting discovery, each performance shaped like an individual jewel.“ Colin Clarke, Classical Explorer

"brilliant…delightful...an entirely satisfying programme" James Manheim, AllMusic

"An immensely appealing collection…Oh, if all piano CDs were put together with such imagination! And played with such spontaneity and grace–yet with total precision. How does he do it, exactly?" Ralph Locke, ArtsFuse

"played with eloquence and idiomatic flair…this encore album is totally enjoyable, with witty and insightful programme notes penned by Hamilton himself, which can only be added pleasure." Dr Chang Tou Liang, Pianomania, Singapore

"The album is a real balm for the soul… Hamilton shows himself to be an intelligent, original and sensitive interpreter. Technically, his playing is beyond criticism." Artistic Quality 10/10, Sound Quality 10/10, Overall Impression 10/10. Antje Rößler, Klassik Heute

Kenneth Hamilton writes:

"This is an album of pieces I’ve long loved to play. It’s also a paradox: encores without a preceding programme; musical icing without the cake. But the tracks here were at least recorded as “encores”—played in joyful relaxation and relief towards the end of sessions largely devoted to other albums. Some of the pieces are pretty short, including the premiere recording of the elegant arrangement of Saint-Saëns’ Swan by one of my teachers, the late Lawrence Glover. Three of them – Mendelssohn’s quirky “Last Rose of Summer”, Grainger’s luscious Rosenkavalier Ramble, and Ignaz Friedman’s fabulous version of Voices of Spring – are fairly substantial, and the anchors of the programme. The final track (Godowsky’s Symphonic Metamorphosis on the “Artist’s Life” Waltz) is even longer. It’s really too long, I admit, to be an encore in a public concert, but it’s undeniably a lot of fun, and makes a great close for a CD. Hopefully, listeners will be both shaken and stirred."

Recorded at Cardiff University School of Music on 26/1/19, 21/8/19, 26/1/20 and 25/9/20.
Recording Producer: Stephen Plews
Recording Editor: Philip Hardman
Piano: Hamburg Steinway Model D Piano
Preparation: Ulrich Gerhartz
Piano technicians: Kait Farbon and Gavin Crooks
Album Cover: John William Waterhouse (1849-1917) 'Pandora'
CD Booklet editing: Monika Hennemann
Photo of Kenneth Hamilton: Andrew Bi

You can read Kenneth Hamilton's sleeve notes from Romantic Piano Encores on the Prima Facie blog, Recitative.  

Press Pack: Press Release Cover Image Kenneth Hamilton Image

Described by the Moscow Kommersant as “an outstanding virtuoso−one of the finest players of his generation”, by the Singapore Straits Times as “a formidable virtuoso,” by Tom Service in the Guardian as "pianist, author, lecturer and all-round virtuoso", and by Stefan Pieper in Klassik Heute as a “pianist, scholar, maverick thinker and philosopher”, Kenneth Hamilton is well-known internationally as a recitalist and recording artist of emotional depth and striking originality. His CDs have attracted both critical acclaim and a large number of listeners worldwide. His best-selling 'After the Golden Age: Romantic Pianism and Modern Performance' (Oxford University Press) is one of the most influential books on piano performance in recent decades.

Hamilton is deeply grateful for his pianistic training in Scotland with Lawrence Glover and Ronald Stevenson, experience that later informed his recordings of Stevenson’s music. He has appeared frequently on radio and television in Britain, the US, Germany, France, Canada, Australia, Turkey, Singapore, Thailand, China and Russia, including a performance of Chopin’s first piano concerto with the Istanbul Chamber Orchestra on Turkish Television, and a dual role as pianist and presenter for the television programme Mendelssohn in Scotland, broadcast by Deutsche Welle Channel. He is a familiar artist on BBC Radio 3, Radio 4 and the World Service, and a keen communicator, enthusiastically promoting the understanding and appreciation of music. One of his most recent BBC broadcasts, in the series 'The Essay: My Life in Music', was described by Sir Nicholas Kenyon in The Observer as “Revelatory…touching...a personal story of loss and death that reaches out from the radio. That is what broadcasting is all about”.

Hamilton’s recordings for the Prima Facie label: Volumes 1 and 2 of 'Kenneth Hamilton Plays Ronald Stevenson', 'Back to Bach: Tributes and Transcriptions by Liszt, Rachmaninov and Busoni', 'Preludes to Chopin' and 'More Preludes to Chopin' have enjoyed outstanding reviews: “played with understanding and brilliance” (Andrew McGregor, BBC Radio 3 Record Review); “an unmissable disk… fascinating music presented with power, passion and precision” (Colin Clarke, Fanfare);“precise control and brilliance” (Andrew Clements, The Guardian); “thrilling” (Jeremy Nicholas, Gramophone); “a gorgeous recording and excellent performance” (Jack Sullivan, American Record Guide). He has also made the first recording of John Casken’s 'Six Wooded Pieces' (premiered by him at the Esplanade, Singapore, in 2019) on the CD Stolen Airs (“a terrific disc”, Fanfare). His latest CD release is 'Romantic Piano Encores' (Grainger, Godowsky, Mendelssohn and more).

Hamilton’s Chopin and Stevenson recordings entered UK Classical Charts immediately on their release. 'Preludes to Chopin' has now been streamed online nearly a million times, while 'More Preludes to Chopin' was chosen as one of Spotify’s “Best Classical New Releases”. Both have attracted widespread attention for the originality of their performance style. For Dr Chang Tou Liang of the Singapore Straits Times they offer “a new way of listening to Chopin”. Stefan Pieper (Klassik Heute) commented: “Hamilton’s approach to Chopin ignores the pianistic fashions of today’s music market, challenges the dogmas of historical performance practice, and offers an entire palette of new and intriguing experiences”, James Manheim (AllMusic) wrote: “The commercial success of this release shows how strongly audiences hunger for fresh interpretations of mainstream repertory, and a fresh interpretation is exactly what you get“, while Ralph Locke (ArtsFuse) remarked: “This is real music-making, not subservient reciting from a sacred text. Hamilton’s Chopin could change your whole attitude toward the role of the performer in classical music.”

Hamilton is Head of the School of Music at Cardiff University in Wales, UK. He is recognised as one of the world’s leading experts on the history of piano performance in general, and on the music of Chopin and Liszt in particular. He completed a doctorate on Liszt at Balliol College, Oxford (he is indebted to his tutors, Hugh Macdonald and John Warrack, for any scholarly skills he might have), and was commissioned to write the 2011 bicentenary article on the composer for the New York Times (a “fine, unsentimental appreciation” according to Alex Ross). His ground-breaking work, 'After the Golden Age: Romantic Pianism and Modern Performance' was a Daily Telegraph Book of the Year in the UK, a recipient of an ARSC award, and a CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title in the US. It was welcomed as “full of wit and interest, and written with passion” by Charles Rosen (Times Literary Supplement), as "brilliantly researched and beautifully written” by Stuart Isacoff (Symphony Magazine) and as “a delightful book” by Bernard Holland (New York Times). It has been translated into Italian, Hungarian and Mandarin.

As a teacher and mentor himself, Hamilton much enjoys passing on the flame to aspiring professional pianists. He has been a visiting artist and guest professor at many institutions worldwide, including the Franz Liszt Academy in Hungary and the St. Petersburg Conservatory in Russia, and gives regular masterclasses in China and the Far East.