Pre-Order: Igor Levit – Resistance [CD]

With Resistance, Igor Levit presents a compelling program exploring freedom, power, and political resistance. The album brings together Beethovens groundbreaking Symphony No. 3 Eroica in Franz Liszts virtuosic piano transcription and Arnold Schoenbergs politically charged masterpiece Ode to Napoleon. Originally dedicated to Napoleon Bonaparte, Beethovens symphony became the Eroica after Napoleon crowned himself Emperor. For Igor Levit, the work continues to embody human resilience, inner strength, and artistic independence. Liszts extraordinary transcription translates the symphonys orchestral power to the piano and remains a landmark achievement in the art of transcription. Levit places Schoenbergs Ode to Napoleon alongside it. Written in exile in 1942 and based on a text by Lord Byron, the work stands as a powerful musical indictment of tyranny and oppression. Together with the Kammerakademie Potsdam under Antonello Manacorda and acclaimed actress Drte Lyssewski as narrator, Levit delivers a performance of striking intensity and contemporary relevance.

Tracklist:

1. Ode to Napoleon Buonaparte, Op. 41
2. Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 55 “Eroica” (Transcr. for Piano by Franz Liszt, S. 464/3)
3. I. Allegro con brio
4. II. Marcia funebre. Adagio assai
5. III. Scherzo. Allegro vivace
6. IV. Finale. Allegro molto

UPC: 199584546421
Label: Masterworks
Release Date: 12.4.26
Format: CD