Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Variations sur un thème de Haendel

Oliver Knussen (1952-)
Variations pour piano

Luciano Berio (1925-2003)
Cinque Variazioni

George Benjamin (1960-)
Méditation sur le nom de Haydn

Peter Lieberson (1946-2011)
Variations pour piano

Benjamin Hochman, piano

Pianist Benjamin Hochman follows his critically acclaimed AVIE debut Homge to Schubert (AV 2281) – which paired two sonatas by the 19th century master with modern day tributes by Kurtág and Widmann – with a like-minded program centred on the age-old musical form of variations. At the heart of the album is Handel Variations by Brahms, a grand master of the art form. The four shorter Piano Variations on this recording are by major composers of the late 20th and early 21st century: Oliver Knussen, Luciano Berio, George Benjamin and Peter Lieberson. Each composition is a piece of great beauty but with results that are strikingly diverse.