• Franz Liszt: Klavierkonzerte Nr. 1 & 2; Polonaise für Klavier & Orchester (nach Carl Maria von Weber); Klaviersonate h-moll; Annees de pelerinage (2. Jahr: Schweiz); Venezia e Napoli; Paganini-Etüde Nr. 2; Gnomenreigen (in zwei Einspielungen); Ungarische Rhapsodien Nr. 2, 6-8, 10-13, 15 (Nr. 8 in zwei Einspielungen); Grand Galop chromatique; Grande Etude de perfectionnement "Ab Irato"; Grande Fantaisie de bravoure sur la Clochette de Paganini; Präludium "Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen"; Consolations Nr. 1-6; Nuages gris; La Lugubre gondola (Versionen 1 & 2); R. W. - Venezia; Kleine Klavierstücke Nr. 1-4; Elegie Nr. 2; Dem Andenken Petöfis; Schlaflos! Frage und Antwort; Unstern! Sinistre, disastro; Mephistowalzer Nr. 1 (in zwei Einspielungen); 5 Ungarische Volkslieder; Sposalizio; Liebestraum Nr. 3; La Campanella; Balladen Nr. 1 & 2 (in zwei Einspielungen); Funerailles (in zwei Einspielungen); La Leggierezza; Waldesrauschen; Valse-Impromptu; Valse oubliee
  +Robert Schumann: Fantasie op. 17; Arabeske op. 18; Novelette op. 21 Nr. 1; Klaviersonate Nr. 2; Romanze op. 28 Nr. 2; Die Lotosblume op. 25 Nr. 7; Widmung op. 25 Nr. 1; Carnaval op. 9 (in zwei Einspielungen); : Ein Faschingsschwank aus Wien op. 26 (in zwei Einspielungen); Kinderszenen op. 15 (in zwei Einspielungen); Symphonische Etüden op. 13 (in zwei Einspielungen)
  +Franz Schubert: Klaviersonaten D. 537, 664, 960; Impromptus D. 899
  +Frederic Chopin: Klaviersonaten Nr. 2 & 3; Balladen Nr. 1-4; Scherzi Nr. 1-4; Etüden Nr. 1-24; Nouvelles Etudes Nr. 1-3; Walzer Nr. 1-19; Impromptus Nr. 1-4; Polonaisen Nr. 1-19; Andante spianato et Grande Polonaise brillante op. 22; Große Fantasie über polnische Lieder op. 13
  +Cesar Franck: Prelude, Fugue et Variation h-moll; Prelude, Choral et Fugue; Danse lente; Prelude, Aria et Final
  +Alexander Scriabin: Klaviersonaten Nr. 1, 2, 4
  +Sergej Rachmaninoff: Klaviersonaten Nr. 1 & 2; Preludes op. 3 Nr. 2; op. 23 Nr. 1-10; op. 32 Nr. 1-13; Etudes-Tableaux op. 33 Nr. 1-8; Polka de W. R. As-Dur
  +Serge Prokofieff: Klaviersonate Nr. 8 B-Dur op. 84
  +Johann Sebastian Bach: Chromatische Fantasie & Fuge BWV 903; Italienisches Konzert BWV 971; Präludien & Fugen BWV 532 & 552 (BWV 532 in zwei Einspielungen); Französische Suite BWV 816; Jesus bleibet meine Freud; Prelude, Gavotte & Gigue aus Partita BWV 1006; Partiten BWV 825 & 825; Violinsonate BWV 1001; Chaconne aus Partita BWV 1004; Preludio aus Partita BWV 1008
  +Claude Debussy: Suite bergamasque; Arabesques Nr. 1 & 2
  +Domenico Scarlatti: Klaviersonaten K. 141 & 380
  +Moritz Moszkowski: Etüde Nr. 6
  +Gabriel Faure: Apres un reve op. 7 Nr. 1
  +Ludwig van Beethoven: Variationen WoO 80; Klaviersonaten Nr. 8, 14, 21, 23
  +Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Klavierkonzert Nr. 21
  +Johannes Brahms: Paganini-Variationen op. 35; Händel-Variationen op. 24
  +Felix Mendelssohn: Etüde op. 104 Nr. 1; Lied ohne Worte op. 67 Nr. 4
  +Alexander Borodin: Scherzo As-Dur
  +Fritz Kreisler: Liebesfreud

The most comprehensive tribute to the art of the Italian pianist Sergio Fiorentino ever released on record. Many recordings have been remastered here and are being released for the first time in the digital age. A milestone for piano lovers.

This set was curated by collector Ernst Lumpe, who contributed an essay by Christoph Schlüren and Ottavia Maria Maceratini as well as a detailed appreciation and introduction to the set's booklet. It was Lumpe who brought the pianist out of retirement in the 1990s, which led to an "Indian summer" of recordings made in Berlin until shortly before the pianist's death in 1998. They are reissued here, along with much lesser-known solo and concerto recordings from the 1950s and 60s - "The Early Recordings" - and separate sections devoted to Fiorentino's special, unforced mastery of Chopin and Liszt.

Many of the early recordings were made in the UK for the Concert Artist label under the supervision of William Barrington-Coupe and some were released under pseudonyms (although they were not credited to his wife Joyce Hatto, at least not at the time). in 1954 he recorded Mozart's Concerto K467 in Naples; the repertoire from these years otherwise concentrates on sonorous interpretations of the German repertoire, from Bach (and Bach / Busoni) to Beethoven and the fantastically imaginative works of Schumann and Brahms.

Around this time, however, he also recorded several major Chopin collections: the Ballades, Etudes, Polonaises, Scherzos and Waltzes. The sources for all these recordings vary between master tapes (occasionally) and more often the best available LP copies, often of publications issued in very limited editions and with uncompromising technique, but the artistic value of the performances speaks for itself. Lumpe calls him a "true aristocrat" of the piano and quotes several of his students who describe him as a musician without ego, who was demanding and quietly aware of his own abilities, but modest and averse to self-promotion or artistic temperamental outbursts. Alongside a certain revival of this repertoire, Fiorentino later turned to the Russian repertoire in Berlin: Prokofiev, Scriabin and especially Rachmaninov, whom he had always revered as the pre-eminent pianist. If this set attests to anything, it is Fiorentino's place in the canon as one of Rachmaninov's few worthy successors.

- "He is the only other pianist," said the legendary Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli about Sergio Fiorentino. How can it be that one of the greatest musical geniuses of the 20th century is still so unknown? - Sergio Fiorentino (1927-1998) was a remarkable Italian pianist whose career combined extraordinary artistry with a quiet, almost enigmatic presence in the musical world. Fiorentino was born in Naples and showed exceptional talent from a young age. He studied at the renowned San Pietro a Majella Conservatory under the direction of Alfredo Casella and Paolo Denza. His early successes included major competition victories and promising concert debuts, which established him as a rising star in the classical music scene of the mid-20th century.

- However, Fiorentino's career took a dramatic turn after a plane crash in 1954, which scarred him physically and emotionally. Although he resumed performing, his public appearances became sporadic and he withdrew from the international stage.

- Fiorentino's recordings, which gained wider recognition later in his life, show a pianist of exceptional depth, technical mastery and interpretative insight. Fiorentino was known for his fondness for composers such as Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt and Rachmaninoff. His playing was characterized by clarity, emotional intensity and a lack of ostentation. His interpretations were well thought out and eschewed showmanship in favor of profound musical communication.

- In the 1990s, Fiorentino resumed performing and belatedly gained recognition as a cult figure among piano lovers. Tragically, his life ended in 1998, but his legacy lives on in a treasure trove of recordings that continue to inspire listeners and cement his status as one of the most distinctive pianists of the 20th century.

- This set brings together the majority of Fiorentino's recordings, from the 1950s to the Berlin studio recordings of the early 1990s. Some of the (live) recordings inevitably show their origins and technical shortcomings, but everywhere the incredible musical power of one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century shines through.