Alexandre Tharaud & Friends - Four Hands

"Piano duets are the most intimate form of chamber music," says pianist Alexandre Tharaud, "you perceive the hidden inner workings of your partner at the piano very intensely." The album Four Hands presents on each of the 22 tracks a different musical partner alongside Alexandre Tharaud. 18 of the musicians are themselves celebrated pianists, including Mariam Batsashvili, David Fray and Víkingur Ólafsson. Alexandre Tharaud chose the respective work in accordance with the character and artistic preferences of his counterpart. The result is a broad repertoire from Bach to Glass, with both Schubert and Tsjaikovski, Debussy and Piazzolla. His friends Gautier Capuçon and Philippe Jaroussky and French singer-songwriter Juliette also sat with him at the piano in the studio. The genre of piano duets played an important role in the 19th century. Long before the invention of sound recordings, music lovers bought piano transcriptions of operas or symphonic works. At home they would then play their favorite piece, preferably four-handed. "I want to encourage listeners to discover a genre that is currently somewhat neglected in major concert halls," says Alexandre Tharaud. "If hearing these pieces prompts someone to buy a sheet of music and play duets together - just as we did in the recording studio - then I will have achieved my artistic goal."