On his 2025 album, Canadian star pianist Jan Lisiecki brings the diverse sounds of the prelude to life, highlighting that it is far more than just a curtain-raiser to something else. Frédéric Chopin's extraordinary 24 Préludes Op. 28 are inspiration and centrepiece of this recording. For Lisiecki, Chopin was a master of the short form" who "brought the prelude out of the shadows and into the spotlight." Chopin's pieces are complemented and contrasted with selected preludes by other composers from across three centuries, each representing a pinnacle of achievement in the genre - from Bach, Messiaen, Rachmaninoff to Górecki. Lisiecki seeks "to showcase the broad possibilities of the humble prelude" that takes "the audience on a musical expedition" through these kaleidoscopic miniatures."

Disc 1

1. Prelude in A flat major, B. 86. Presto Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)
2. Prelude in C major, BWV 846 from The Well-Tempered Clavier Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
3. Prelude in D minor, op. 23/3. Tempo di minuetto Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)
4. Préludes pour piano Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992)
5. No. 1: La colombe. Lent, expressif, d'une sonorité très enveloppée
6. No. 2: Chant d'extase dans un paysage triste. Lent et triste
7. No. 3: Le nombre léger. Vif et léger
8. Frédéric Chopin
9. Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 45. Sostenuto Frédéric Chopin

Disc 2

1. Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3/2. Lento Sergei Rachmaninoff
2. Prelude, op. 1/1. Molto agitato
3. Henryk Górecki (1933-2010)
4. Prelude, op. 1/4. Molto allegro quasi presto
5. Prelude in C minor, BWV 847 from The Well-Tempered Clavier
6. Johann Sebastian Bach
7. Prelude in G minor, op. 23/5. Alla marcia Sergei Rachmaninoff

Disc 3

1. Preludes, op. 28 Frédéric Chopin
2. No. 1 in C major. Agitato
3. No. 2 in A minor. Lento
4. No. 3 in G major. Vivace
5. No. 4 in E minor. Largo
6. No. 5 in D major. Allegro molto
7. No. 6 in B minor. Lento assai
8. No. 7 in A major. Andantino
9. No. 8 in F sharp minor. Molto agitato
10. No. 9 in E major. Largo
11. No. 10 in C sharp minor. Allegro molto
12. No. 11 in B major. Vivace
13. No. 12 in G sharp minor. Presto
14. No. 13 in F sharp major. Lento
15. No. 14 in E flat minor. Allegro

Disc 4

1. No. 15 in D flat major. Sostenuto
2. No. 16 in B flat minor. Presto con fuoco
3. No. 17 in A flat major. Allegretto
4. No. 18 in F minor. Allegro molto
5. No. 19 in E flat major. Vivace
6. No. 20 in C minor. Largo
7. No. 21 in B flat major. Cantabile
8. No. 22 in G minor. Molto agitato
9. No. 23 in F major. Moderato
10. No. 24 in D minor. Allegro appassionato

Label: Deutsche Grammophon

Catalog: 168478

Genre: Classical Artists