"Very popular during Chopin’s lifetime, the waltzes have long been a favourite with professionals and amateurs alike. Highly virtuosic – most of them were clearly not intended to be danced – and sometimes melancholy, they nevertheless retain the distinctive lightness and grace that we associate with the genre.
These pieces have accompanied François Chaplin since his early days as a pianist. After so many years spent playing them, looking beyond their apparent simplicity and fathoming the depths of their poetry, this lifelong admirer of Chopin brings together here, on this magnificent recording – ten years after his complete Nocturnes – the composer’s 19 Waltzes. This complete and continuous reading enables us to perceive them as a whole, stunningly beautiful and full of verve."
"Très populaires du vivant de Chopin, les Valses ont longtemps trôné sur les pupitres des professionnels comme des amateurs : particulièrement virtuoses, parfois mélancoliques, elles conservent néanmoins la légèreté et la grâce propres au genre.
Elles accompagnent François Chaplin depuis ses débuts. Après de nombreuses années passées à les jouer, à déjouer leur apparente simplicité et à sonder toute la poésie qu'elles recèlent, ce chopinien de la première heure réunit les 19 Valses consacrées par l'usage dans ce magnifique enregistrement, 10 ans après son intégrale des Nocturnes. Cette lecture complète et continue permet de les appréhender dans un ensemble étourdissant de verve et de beauté."
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