Cascioli: 12 Études

New and absorbing contributions to a pianistic lineage from Chopin to Ligeti.
Gianluca Cascioli wrote these 12 piano Etudes, in two volumes of six, between November 2020 and July 2023, before taking them into the studio in September 2023. Followers of the pianist’s recorded output, on both DG and Piano Classics, will anticipate the fastidious articulation, sculpted rhythm and highly coloured tone of his Beethoven, his Berg and Boulez on disc.
Albums of his music for cello and for solo piano have also given notice of Cascioli’s individual voice as a composer. Here is a composer-pianist who has Debussy, Busoni and Liszt under his fingers, and a full command of both diatonic and chromatic harmony. The pieces speak of our own time, inevitably inflected by all that has preceded them.
Each of the 12 studies recorded here has a dedicatee and is in some way inspired by an aspect of their personality. The music of Frank Zappa inspired No.2, and No.4 is a retrograde canon built on a cantus firmus derived from John Lennon’s song War is Over.
Thus, while the technique underlying their construction is formidably complex (and fully outlined in the booklet essay) the expression is quite direct. As Cascioli remarks, ‘The idea of technique being concealed is essential to me. I do not admire technique when it is showcased, but only when it conveys a message.’
Passing passages bear certain resemblances to Chopin, to Messiaen and to Ligeti: all composers who have extended piano techniques in their time. No.7, for instance, is ‘an amusement between white and black keys, somewhat akin to Chopin’s Op.10 No.5.’ No.8 Étude No.8 unexpectedly ventures into minimalism, with ostinato rhythms that gradually phase out of sync. Each successive Etude presents new challenges to the pianist and new avenues of exploration to the inquisitive listener.

- Italian Gianluca Cascioli is one of the foremost pianists of our time. Born in Turin, Italy, in 1979, he gained international recognition at a young age by winning the prestigious Umberto Micheli International Piano Competition in 1994. This victory launched his career, leading to collaborations with world-renowned orchestras such as the Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic New York Philharmonic, and conductors such as Claudio Abbado, Riccardo Muti, Zubin Mehta, Lorin Maazel and Mstislav Rostropovich.
- Cascioli’s performances are praised for their clarity, expressive depth, and scholarly approach to interpretation. His repertoire is extensive, ranging from the Viennese Classics too far into the 20th century. His many recordings for Deutsche Grammophon won him worldwide acclaim.
- In addition to his career as a pianist, Cascioli is an accomplished composer. His compositions reflect a modern sensibility while maintaining a strong connection to classical tradition. This new recording presents his 12 Etudes for piano. These works show an open mind: innovative, playful, pianistically highly demanding yet completely idiomatic and “pianistic”, creating special textures and sonorities.
- Played with complete mastery by Gianluca Cascioli himself.