Hugo Llanos Campos - Fantasía Chilena (2022)

This new piano CD explores a repertoire that until now has probably been considered an exotic phenomenon in the European repertoire. Many South American composers picked up musical influences from Europe in the 19th century. This has often resulted in a tonal language that sounds familiar to our ears and at the same time shows many influences from the rich, indigenous cultures of the large subcontinent. Hugo Llanos Campos, a young Chilean who currently lives in Vienna, dared to take stock on his new CD for the ARS label.

In his cycle of variations "Fantasy con variaciones sobre dos 7 amacuencas", Santiago Heitz (1819-1879) synchronized a light-footed, romantic diction with the dance figure of the "Zamacueca", the forerunner of the Chilean national dance. In the 19th century, Fréderico Guzman (1827-1885) went from Chile to North America and from there to Paris. Which left its mark on him, as evidenced by the strong influence of Chopin in his Nocturno.

Wilhelm Deichert (1828-1871) emigrated to Chile in the 1830s and absorbed the local way of life so much that he even changed his name to Gillaume Deichert. If he remains true to his European-Romantic roots, his cycle "Bouquet de Fleurs, Musicales Chiliennes" also shows a great openness to integrate folk songs, dances and finally the Chilean national anthem.

The pianist Hugo Llanos Campos shares exactly this culture-connecting openness. Born in Santiago de Chile in 1994, his fascination with Beethoven led him to Vienna, where he completed his master's degree. Virtuosic, with a slender touch and, if necessary, also pointed and powerful, his playing on this CD is dedicated to the healthy balance of pianistic bravura and dancing verve. You can happily immerse yourself in the resulting narrative flow, which makes many aspects tangible even without knowing the background described in the detailed booklet. A real discovery.