Dario Candela, Aldo Ciccolini, Circolo Artistico Ensemble - Mario Pilati, Achille Longo: Piano Quintets (2011)

This release champions two relatively unknown Neapolitan composers. Mario Pilati’s style was described by musicologist Gianandrea Gavazzeni as “southern Baroque, full of songlike whims and lively impulses”, and the rhythmically vital and deeply expressive Piano Quintet of 1927–28 is one of his most important early pieces. Pianist Aldo Ciccolini was one of Achille Longo’s favourite pupils as a child, and his close association with the healthily eclectic Quintet brings a special warmth to its rich timbres and joyously refined nuances. The Circolo Artistico Ensemble specialises in the revival of the unpublished work of Italian composers.