György Cziffra - Various Transcriptions

Pf: Clarisse Hirzel
℗ 2002 Virtuosys
Provided to YouTube by The Orchard Enterprises

Originally from Maur (Zurich), Hirzel began her musical studies at the age of 14 at the École normale de musique de Paris then at the National Conservatory of Music in Cachan where she obtained the Gold Medal three years later, unanimously with congratulations from the jury. The following three years would be devoted to consolidating her musical training: Baccalaureate in Arts and Letters, First Prize for excellence and First Prize for virtuosity at the Conservatory, First Grand Prix at the European Competition in Besançon, France.

With this experience, she made her debut on the Parisian scene at the Salle Gaveau by performing Beethoven's 4th Concerto under the direction of Stéphan Werner and then under the direction of the conductor Daniel Stirn. She then performed regularly in Europe (England, Poland, Switzerland, Spain), in Paris at the Gaveau hall, at the Institute of Polish Sciences and at the Cortot hall, and distinguished herself in several competitions: Laureate of the Milosz Magin International Competition in 19931 and Special Prize for the best interpretation of Frédéric Chopin, Virtuosity Prize and Special Prize for the best interpretation of young pianists in Meknès, Morocco.

She takes part in the Masterclass of the International Academy of Tours and follows the lessons of Alexander Slobodyanik, Russian pianist living in New York, winner of the Chopin Competition in Warsaw and the Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow. Completing with Vadim Sakharov learning the virtuoso pianistic technique according to "the Russian school", in 1995, she became a winner of the Georges Cziffra Foundation. This distinction allowed her to discover and play the great studies of concert by Georges Cziffra in numerous festivals: Paris, Calvi, and later, New York. It is this repertoire requiring extreme virtuosity that allowed it to stand out through Orange France Telecom, a cultural sponsorship aimed at promoting young talents in the arts.

0:00 - La Valse Triste, Franz von Vecsey
3:33 - La Fantaisie Roumaine, György Cziffra
16:31 - Hungarian Dance No.4, Johannes Brahms
20:29 - La Cinquième Danse Hongroise, Johannes Brahms
24:16 - Hungarian Dance No.6, Johannes Brahms

Fantasie d'après Guillaume Tell, Gioacchino Rossini
28:03 - I. Introduction
30:57 - II. Orage (from 33:45 to 34:28, Hirzel strays drastically from the sheet music so I transitioned through the transcription to show what Cziffra originally performed.)
34:55 - III. Pastorale
38:36 - IV. Finale (Rondo libre avec variations)

43:26 - Tritsch-Tratsch Polka, Johann Strauss Jr.
47:36 - An Der Schönen Blauen Donau, Johann Strauss Jr.
57:40 - Le Vol Du Bourdon, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
1:01:26 - Sabre Dance, Aram Khachaturian