Katie Mahan - Once Upon a Time (2022) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

01. Prelude & Fugue in C Major, K. 394: I. Prelude
02. Prelude & Fugue in C Major, K. 394: II. Fugue
03. Piano Sonata No. 8 in A Minor, K. 310: I. Allegro maestoso
04. Piano Sonata No. 8 in A Minor, K. 310: II. Andante cantabile con espressione
05. Piano Sonata No. 8 in A Minor, K. 310: III. Presto
06. Allegro for Piano in C Major, K. 9a
07. Klavierstück in F Major, K. 33b
08. Piano Sonata in B Minor, S. 178

On October 7, 2022 STEINWAY & SONS releases Once Upon a Time (STNS 30203), pianist Katie Mahan's third release for the STEINWAY label. The album begins with Mozart's Fantasy and Fugue, K 394, an enchanting and underplayed work Katie first discovered at the age of 12. In the album's liner notes Katie writes that at the time she had an obsession with the music of Bach and the discovery of the “baroque” side of Mozart delighted her. The sonata subsequently secured a place in her repertoire.

The album continues with the Sonata in A minor, K 310, one of Mozart’s most beloved works for piano. Katie says that “this sonata found itself repeatly on my recital programs. While the outer movements appealed to me for their technical brilliance, it was the second movement with its sheer beauty and poignancy that really affected me.”

Following the A minor Sonata are two works from Mozart’s childhood, the Allegro in C major, K 5a and Klavierstück in F major, K 33b. Katie writes that these two works take her back to her very earliest years, as she played them on first recitals as a five year old.

The album closes with Franz Liszt's monumental Sonata in B minor. Katie fell in love with the work at the age of seven and was determined to learn it despite its difficulty. Katie writes “At that time, I was not very fond of note reading and learned primarily by ear, but to ensure that I learn the sonata correctly, my mother (who was also my teacher through the age of eighteen) lovingly wrote in all the notes of the difficult technical passages. Over the course of its thirty-some pages, I learned how to read music, and over the course of my lifetime, this work has appeared, disappeared and reappeared in my repertoire perhaps more than any other work.” Filled with dazzling virtuosity and vast expressive range, it is recognized as one of the greatest compositions in the piano literature.

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