Granados: Goyescas, an Opera for Piano Jean-Francois Dichamp

• Enrique Granados (1867 - 1916): Goyescas:
• 1 Goyescas: I. Los requiebros - The Compliments 09:26
• 2 Goyescas: II. Coloquio en la Reja - Conversation at the Window 11:25
• Domenico Scarlatti (1685 - 1757):
• 3 Sonata in E-Flat Major, K.193 03:27
• Enrique Granados: Goyescas:
• 4 Goyescas: III. El Fandango de Candil - Fandango by Candlelight 06:24
• Domenico Scarlatti:
• 5 Sonata in D Minor, K.141 02:56
• Antonio Soler (1729 - 1783):
• 6 Sonata No. 21 in C-Sharp Minor 03:01
• Enrique Granados: Goyescas:
• 7 Goyescas: IV. Quejas, o la maja y el ruiseñor - Complaint, or the Girl and the Nightingale 06:33
• Domenico Scarlatti:
• 8 Sonata in F-Sharp Minor, K.25 03:00
• Enrique Granados: Goyescas:
• 9 Goyescas: V. El Amor y la muerte - Ballad of Love and Death 12:48
• Domenico Scarlatti:
• 10 Sonata in G Minor, K.8 04:42
• Enrique Granados: Goyescas:
• 11 Goyescas: VI. Epílogo. Serenata del espectro - Epilogue. Serenade to a Spectre 08:16
• Domenico Scarlatti:
• 12 Sonata in E Minor, K.198 02:14
• Total Runtime 01:14:12

Info for Granados: Goyescas, an Opera for Piano

A unique coupling on record: a Romantic piano masterpiece with sonatas from the time of the paintings by Goya that fired the imagination of Granados to compose Goyescas.

In his booklet essay, Jean-François Dichamp explains that he experienced an epiphany with Goyescas: while Granados himself later reworked his piano cycle into an opera, first premiered to acclaim at the Metropolitan Opera House, just a couple of months before the composer’s untimely death by drowning, the pianist sees the piano cycle as a through-written dramatic work in its own right: an opera for piano. He plays it accordingly, with tremendous fire and awareness of the voices which may be heard in pieces such as ‘The Maiden and the Nightingale’.

This is the lyric heart of a cycle which opens with the courtly insinuations of ‘Galant Compliments’ and soon progresses to a more ardent love duet, ‘Conversation at the Window’. Finally, as so often in Spanish music, death has the last word, and the cycle closes with the Serenade to a Ghost: comical yet chilling, unnerving and quintessentially Spanish.

Between each section of the Goyescas, like intermezzi at the opera, Dichamp places a Baroque keyboard sonata, by Scarlatti and Soler. This is the music that would have accompanied aristocratic evenings for the nobles who were immortalised – not always in complimentary terms – by Goya. These are the paintings that changed the course of Granados’s career when he first saw them as a young man in the Prado museum in Madrid, and determined that one day he would pay homeage to Goya’s muse in music.

Jean-François Dichamp graduated from the Paris Conservatoire and became a pupil of Nikita Magaloff. His recordings have long attracted critical praise: ‘A pianist of great delicacy, subtle and elegant’ (Le Monde de la Musique); ‘his Chopin is at once thorough and profound’ (Diapason).

In his piano suite Goyescas Spanish composer Enrique Granados was inspired by paintings by Goya, each painting telling its own story, and together forming one continuous tale, an fictional opera (in fact he wrote this actual opera with the title Goyescas, rarely performed nowadays). The Goyescas are one of Spain’s most important and indeed iconic piano suites (together with the Iberia suite by Albeniz), its full blooded Romanticism is infused with the sounds, rhythms and perfumes of Granados’ native country Spain.

French pianist Jean-François Dichamp intersperses the Goyescas suite with several sonatas by Scarlatti and Soler, works which, though separated some 150 years, share the same Andalusian spirit.

Jean-François Dichamp was a student of Nikita Magaloff and Maria Curcio (a Schnabel student). “A very sensitive artist”(The Times), “A pianist of great delicacy, subtle and elegant” (Le Monde de la Musique), “His Chopin is at once thorough and profound” (Diapason).

Jean-Francois Dichamp, piano

Jean-Francois Dichamp
In 1982, a 12 year-old boy made his first major appearance on TV screens throughout the world. This was Jean-François Dichamp, playing the part of the young Mozart in Marcel Bluwal’s epic film dedicated to the great composer. Until then, he began to study piano with his mother at an early age and also classical ballet during several years. But he always felt as being a musician rather than an actor or dancer.

After his succesful experience on screen he chose the difficult route of a career in music at the Paris Conservatory, where he was unanimously awarded his Premier Prix and the circuit of international piano competitions. Afterwards he met Nikita Magaloff with whom he studied during a while, being fascinated during his piano lessons by the so elegant and refined playing of the great Maestro and became one of the most brillant students of Maria Curcio. A disciple of Schnabel, Mme Curcio brought depth to his knowledge of the piano, and enlarged his whole musical horizon. She still is the musical personality who most impressed him during his artistic life.

Before long he began to reap the rewards of his talent and hard work. He won three prizes at the Santander international piano competition, finalist Prize, « young talent Prize » and the « Special Chopin Prize » awarded by Madame Arthur Rubinstein. This signalled the start of a career which brought him acclaim in Spain and many other countries. He has played in England, Poland, Ireland, Germany, Turkey, Romania, Holland, Portugal, Cyprus, Algeria, the USA, Mexico, Colombia, Paraguay, Chili and Brasil. « A very sensitive artist » according to The Times ; « a natural gift for Chopin » The Independent of Sunday; from Mexico « a truly musical event, after his magnificent recital the audience gave him a standing ovation ».

Jean-François Dichamp has been a guest of France Musiques, Radio Classique and various festivals, including the Chopin at Duzniki (Poland), the "Chorégies d'Orange", the "Midis Musicaux du Châtelet" in Paris, the "Festa de la Musica" in Lisboa, the International Piano Festival of la Roque d'Anthéron and "The Folles Journées de Nantes". He has also taken part in the International Piano Festival of Frutillar (Chili) three times, the Piano Festival of Monterrey in Mexico and also twice in the International Piano Series of Charleston in South Carolina (USA).

Booklet for Granados: Goyescas, an Opera for Piano