Piano Recital 1960

Samson François was an enfant terrible of piano music in the 1950s and 1960s and was generally regarded as "the French Glenn Gould". His unique interpretive style, extravagant and at times downright eccentric, led music critics to remark that François's playing was as wild as his hairstyle. The public saw things differently: François had numerous fans all over the world, and his regrettably few sound recordings (especially of works by Frédéric Chopin) are still regarded by his admirers today as veritable cult recordings by an early-deceased genius, one of the few true individualists in the world of piano music. Although his studio recordings are by no means numerous, live recordings of this pianist are considered highly sought-after rarities. There is therefore every reason for piano music fans to rejoice, as these recordings from the SWR archive showcase the full range of this highly fascinating pianist, from Mendelssohn and Chopin to Debussy and Prokoffiev. The energetic performances of Chopin's second sonata and Prokoffiev's seventh sonata form the core of this rare live document, revealing François just as his fans love him: wild, unrestrained, passionate, and fiercely individualistic. Magnificent!