Guastavino & Rachmaninoff Martin Klett

• Carlos Guastavino (1912 - 2000):
• 1 Bailecito: Allegretto non troppo 03:14
• Sonatina for Piano:
• 2 I. Allegretto 03:11
• 3 II. Lento muy expresivo 02:43
• 4 III. Presto 02:02
• 10 Cantos Populares:
• 5 No. 1 01:40
• 6 No. 2 01:14
• 7 No. 3 00:54
• 8 No. 5 00:53
• 9 No. 6 02:30
• 10 No. 8 02:06
• 11 No. 10 01:20
• Tres Romances Nuevos:
• 12 No. 1. La Niña del Río dulce 07:13
• 13 No. 2. El Chico que vino del Sur 03:32
• Las Niñas:
• 14 Las Niñas 05:31
• Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873 - 1943): Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-Flat Minor, Op. 36:
• 15 I. Allegro agitato (Version 1931) 08:27
• 16 II. Non allegro - Lento (Version 1931) 05:49
• 17 III. L'istesso tempo - Allegro molto (Version 1931) 06:10
• Total Runtime 58:29

Info for Guastavino & Rachmaninoff

So far and yet so near: The harmonies and the virtuosity: that is what the two composers Sergei Rachmaninoff and Carlos Guastavino have in common. “Even though at first glance the geographical distance between them was immense, their approach to the piano was strikingly similar”, remarks Martin Klett. In both composers he loves the Romantic element – paired with attractive simplicity in one case, with ambitious piano artistry in the other.

“I don’t think one could even say if this music is by Guastavino or Rachmaninoff! It’s somewhere in between, and thus provides a smooth, perfect transition – the ideal piece to play before the Rachmaninoff sonata.[Las Niñas]” (Martin Klett)

Martin Klett, piano

Martin Klett
has made a name for himself as a solo pianist and chamber musician. Ever since winning the International Johannes Brahms Competition and the German National Music Competition, he has become a welcome guest at the prestigious music festivals of Lucerne, Schleswig-Holstein, Heidelberg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Schwetzingen to name just a few. Further invitations have led to performances throughout Europe and Asia.

As a valued chamber musician, Martin Klett regularly performs with ARD and ECHO prize winners, leaders from major orchestras and renowned professors. Among many others, his chamber music partners are Sebastian Manz, Daniela Koch, Jacques Ammon, Sophie Heinrich and Charles-Antoine Duflot. He has also been invited to perform with such artists as Sabine Meyer, Benedict Klöckner, Maximilian Hornung, Gabriel Schwabe, the Schumann Quartet and many more.

Numerous live recordings as well as 7 CD productions so far present Martin Klett’s extensive discography. The most recent ones are his chamber music CDs with clarinetist Sebastian Manz, published by CAvi and Berlin Classics, as well as the latest album of his Cuarteto SolTango, recorded at Deutschlandfunk Köln. Rave reviews by the Rondo and The Strad magazines illustrate their great success. Martin Klett is currently planning two recordings as soloist in collaboration with the South West German Broadcast and Deutschlandradio Berlin, along with another album by Cuarteto SolTango.

Born in 1987, Martin Klett started taking piano lessons at the age of six. He has been particularly influenced and inspired by Prof. Konrad Elser who provided significant guidance at the Conservatoire of Lübeck. Further tutelage by Elisabeth Leonskaja, Leon Fleisher, Pascal Devoyon, Gerhard Schulz and Walter Levin has rounded off his artistic development. Crowning an impressive array of prizes and distinctions, Klett was awarded a further fellowship from the German National Music Competition which accorded him strengthened recognition as a soloist. A passionate pedagogue, he tutors students of the Conservatoire of Leipzig in piano studies.

Apart from his activities as a classical performer, Klett is an avid arranger and bears a keen interest for Argentine tango. In 2008 he founded the Cuarteto SolTango, which performs Tango Argentino in the spirit of true chamber musicianship, challenging the repertoire of classical concert series on internationally renowned stages and at established festivals in conjunction with Deutschlandfunk and Bavarian Broadcast.

Booklet for Guastavino & Rachmaninoff