Louis Kentner
Although most warmly remembered for his recorded collaborations with his brother-in-law Yehudi Menuhin, Louis Kentner was an important solo performer. His Brahms was noted for its glowing breadth and his Liszt had the stamp of authority. Indeed, Kentner contributed significantly to the rehabilitation of the latter composer's works for solo piano. Kentner was proactive, as well, in the performance of works by contemporary composers; he was much admired by several British composers for his efforts on their behalf and for the exacting standards to which he held.
Of Hungarian and Austrian parentage, Kentner trained in composition at the Budapest Royal Academy with Zoltán Kodály and Hans Koessler while pursuing his piano studies with Arnold Szekely and Leó Weiner. His debut took place at age 13; in 1920 he embarked upon an extensive European tour. Although he excelled in the music of Chopin, he also performed music written by his own contemporaries. Kodály composed his Dances of Marrosszek for him; Kentner gave regional premieres of Bartók's Piano Concerti No. 2 and No. 3.
In 1935, Kentner moved to London, eventually taking British citizenship. He undertook numerous recitals devoted to the music of a single composer. At the Edinburgh Festival, he performed the Beethoven Sonatas with Menuhin and assumed the role of leading advocate for the piano music of contemporary British composers. Kentner premiered works by Alan Rawsthorne, Michael Tippett, and William Walton, among others. Walton composed his Violin Sonata for Kentner and Menuhin and Tippett's Piano Concerto was accorded a commanding first performance by Kentner in 1956.
Kentner toured India with Menuhin in 1954 and performed in several Far East venues in 1956. On November 28, 1956, he finally appeared in the United States, winning highly complimentary reviews for his Town Hall recital. Both Howard Taubman and Paul Henry Lang hailed him as vivid and imaginative with technical gifts of the first order. Lang commented that he was "beyond doubt one of the finest pianists heard here in a long time." In addition to receiving adulatory remarks from critics, Kentner was honored with a CBE in 1978. On disc, Kentner's artistry is preserved in his solo recordings of Liszt, Chopin, and Brahms, and through his collaborations with Menuhin in the sonatas of Beethoven and Bach.
© TiVo
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Beethoven: Sonates pour piano Nos. 5 "Le printemps" & 6 (Mono Version)
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Louis Kentner plays Brahms, Bartok, Walton, Balakirew, Dvorak et al
Klassiek - Released by Profil on 19 mrt. 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ravel & Mozart: Trios pour piano, violon et violoncelle (Mono Version)
Yehudi Menuhin, Gaspar Cassado, Louis Kentner
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1962
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Balakirev, Lyapunov & Liszt: Piano Works
Klassiek - Released by APR on 28 okt. 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dohnanyi, Bartok, Fischer, Kentner, Cziffra plays Liszt
Ernő Dohnányi, Béla Bartók, Annie Fischer, Louis Kentner, Gyorgy Cziffra
Klassiek - Released by Hungaroton on 11 apr. 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sonates pour violon & piano (Intégrale)
Klassiek - Released by Warner Classics on 3 mrt. 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fur Elise And Other Piano Favorites
Klassiek - Released by Hungaroton on 15 jul. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
ORIGINAL FILM MUSIC THEMES: Things to Come (1936-1947)
Jazz - Released by Naxos on 26 apr. 2002
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Violin Sonatas No. 5 in F Major, Op. 24 "Spring" & No. 10 in G Major, Op. 96
Klassiek - Released by The state51 Conspiracy on 3 apr. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sonates pour violon et piano Nos. 8 & 9 "À Kreutzer" (Mono Version)
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sonates pour violon et piano Nos. 3 & 4 (Mono Version)
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sonata No. 10 in G Major, Op. 96: I. Allegro moderato
Klassiek - Released by The state51 Conspiracy Ltd on 3 apr. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Liszt: Solo Piano Music
Klassiek - Released by Vox Legends on 1 jan. 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Liszt: Piano Transcriptions
Klassiek - Released by Vox on 1 jan. 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beecham's L. P. O. Years, Vol. 2: Mozart
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Louis Kentner
Klassiek - Released by Editions Audiovisuel Beulah on 11 jun. 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Sonata NO. 29 in B Flat, OP. 106 ’Hammerklavier’ - Liszt: Liebesträume NO. 3 in a Flat Major, S. 541, Konzertetüden in a Major, S. 145 (Live)
Klassiek - Released by Altair on 11 jan. 2023
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sonates pour violon et piano Nos. 7 & 10 (Mono Version)
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Sonates pour violon et piano Nos. 1 & 2 (Mono Version)
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven - Waldstein / Appassionata
Klassiek - Released by RC3 on 9 okt. 2021
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chausson: Concert pour piano, violon et quatuor à cordes, Op. 21 (Mono Version)
Louis Kentner, Yehudi Menuhin, Quatuor Pascal
Divers - Released by BNF Collection on 1 jan. 1955
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo