Spira, Spera Emmanuel Despax

• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750):
• 1 Bach: Wir danken dir, Gott, wir danken dir, Bwv 29 (Ouverture) 03:54
• 2 Bach: Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, Bwv 1004: Chaconne 16:17
• 3 Bach: Prelude in B Minor, Bwv 855a 03:06
• 4 Bach: Prelude 03:48
• 5 Bach: Prelude and Fugue in A Minor, Bwv 543: Fugue 06:34
• 6 Bach: Nun freut euch, lieben Christen g’mein, Bwv 734 02:02
• 7 Bach: Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, Bwv 659 05:34
• 8 Bach: Passacaglia 09:03
• 9 Bach: Passacaglia and Fugue in C Minor, Bwv 582: Fugue 06:07
• 10 Bach: Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, Bwv 645 03:51
• 11 Bach: Ich ruf' zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ, Bwv 639 03:45
• 12 Bach: Fantasia 06:54
• 13 Bach: Fantasia and Fugue in G Minor, Bwv 542: Fugue 05:37
• 14 Bach: Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, Bwv 147 (Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring) 03:51
• Total Runtime 01:20:23

Info for Spira, Spera

Emmanuel Despax returns to Signum with a disc of JS Bach transcriptions. The title quotes Victor Hugo’s ‘The Hunchback of Notre-Dame’ (“Breathe, Hope”), brought to Despax’s mind following the news of the fire at Notre-Dame Cathedral, where he had attended many concerts of Bach’s music as a child. Despax describes Bach’s music as being “of such clarity, coherence and expressive power, that it is able to transcend its original medium, and to some extent, style.”

This virtuosic programme combines both well-known transcriptions, such as the mighty Bach-Busoni ‘Chaconne’ and Saint-Saën’s ‘Overture’, with the first recordings of several arrangements by the late 19th/early 20th century pianist Theodor Szántó’s – featuring his monumental and uncompromising transcriptions of the Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, and the Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor.

Emmanuel Despax has gained worldwide recognition as a singular artist, whose interpretations bring a rare sincerity and imagination to the music. A remarkable performer of romantic and post-romantic music, he has been invited to give recital performances in the UK (Wigmore Hall’s London Pianoforte Series, Cadogan Hall, Chipping Campden and Petworth Festivals, and the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham, where he was appointed artistic director in 2020 of a complete Beethoven piano sonata cycle). Summer 2021 will see the release of a Brahms album including the Sixteen Waltzes Op. 39 and Piano Concerto No.1 with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Andrew Litton.

Emmanuel Despax, piano

Emmanuel Despax
“Poetry fused with breathtaking technical perfection” (Concertclassic) and “A master colourist with genius-like ability” (Classical Source) is how the brilliant French pianist Emmanuel Despax was described after his acclaimed recitals at the Louvre auditorium in Paris and Wigmore Hall in London.

Despax is establishing himself as an artist whose interpretations bring a rare sincerity and imagination to the music. He performs internationally and is regularly broadcast on many radio stations including France Musique, BBC Radio 3 and Medici TV. Recent highlights include recitals in Paris, Amsterdam and a performance of three piano concertos at Cadogan Hall. This concert was recorded live and released on the Signum Classics label. "Emmanuel Despax is a formidable talent, fleet of finger, elegant of phrase and a true keyboard colourist." (Gramophone) Despax is also a regular performer at London’s Wigmore Hall.

In his native France he has appeared in prestigious venues such as Paris’ Salle Gaveau, the Louvre auditorium and the Festival International des Nuits Pianistiques in Aix-en-Provence. Elsewhere in Europe he has given recitals at the Fazioli Auditorium in Italy, the Gasteig Blackbox in Munich and the Palais des Beaux Arts in Belgium.

Having studied in the UK at the Yehudi Menuhin School and Royal College of Music with Ruth Nye, one of Claudio Arrau’s finest students, Despax draws inspiration from a long tradition of pure artistry and uncompromising commitment to the score. His passion lies in retaining and regaining the true role of a performer, as a faithful vessel for the composer’s message.

Now based in London, Despax has performed with many UK orchestras including the City of Birmingham Symphony, the London Festival Orchestra in their Virtuoso Pianists Series at Cadogan Hall and Arion Orchestra at St James’s Piccadilly. In addition to his recitals at the Wigmore and Cadogan Halls, he has also performed at the National Portrait Gallery, the Drapers’ Hall, the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham, and the Chipping Campden and Petworth Festivals.

Emmnuel Despax will be returning to the Wigmore Hall in London on 5th January 2017 where his next Chopin album on Signum Classics will be pre-released.

Booklet for Spira, Spera