Nightscapes

Night falls in diverse ways in Magdalena Hoffmann’s Deutsche Grammophon debut album. Nightscapes sees the German harpist dive deep into the intimate, mysterious, magical world of night music, as well as exploring the theme of dance. Its tracklist spans everything from the austere beauty of Britten’s Suite for Harp Op. 83 and languid lyricism of Pizzetti’s Sogno to the folk like colours of Tournier’s La danse du moujik. The recording comprises both original pieces for solo harp and compositions for piano, skilfully transcribed by Hoffmann herself. The compositions chosen by the artist portray a multitude of nightscapes, from those we can see to those we know by intuition. “At night everything becomes more intimate, more deeply felt, more multilayered,” observes Hoffmann. “The darkness encourages an inward gaze, while the soul stretches its wings – and so does the imagination. Whether in dreams or during sleepless nights, the limitations placed on our minds by the (every)day begin to melt away.”

With NIGHTSCAPES Magdalena Hoffmann succeeds in presenting the night in various facets and finds a highly personal and contemporary approach to music for one of the most ancient and demanding instruments. “In the music on this album, I wanted to use the harp to tell different nocturnal stories, to dance through the night and dream the night away.” – Magdalena Hoffmann

Born in Basel, Switzerland, Magdalena Hoffmann received her first harp lessons at the age of six. She went on to study in Düsseldorf and at the Royal Academy of Music, before earning a master’s degree from Munich’s Hochschule für Musik. Appointed principal harp of the Tiroler Symphonieorchester Innsbruck in 2014, she began teaching concert harp at the Tiroler Landeskonservatorium a year later. She underlined her talent as a solo artist by taking two special prizes at the 2016 ARD Music Competition in Munich and returned to the Bavarian capital two years later to become principal harp of the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks.

“The harp is Magdalena’s personal playground, a boundless space in which to make new discoveries” - BR Klassik

Tracklist:

OTTORINO RESPIGHI (1879–1936)

1 Notturno in G flat major, No. 3 from Sei pezzi per pianoforte P 44 | Lento

FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN (1810–1849)

2 Valse in A minor KK IVb/11 (B 150) | Allegretto

3 Valse in E minor KK IVa/15 (B 56) | Vivace

ILDEBRANDO PIZZETTI (1880–1968)

4 Sogno (Dream · Traum) | orig. for piano solo

BENJAMIN BRITTEN (1913–1976)

Suite for Harp op. 83

5 I. Overture. Majestic

6 II. Toccata. Fast and gay

7 III. Nocturne. Slow and quiet

8 IV. Fugue. Lively

9 V. Hymn. Slow and solemn

JOHN FIELD (1782–1837)

10 Nocturne in B flat major H 37 | Andante (cantabile)

11 Nocturne in G major H 58 | Lento

HENRIETTE RENIÉ (1875–1956)

12 Danse des lutins (Dance of the Elves · Tanz der Elfen) Vivo. Scherzando

CLARA SCHUMANN (1819–1896)

13 Notturno in F major, No. 2 from Soirées musicales op. 6 | Andante con moto

MARCEL TOURNIER (1879–1951)

14 La Danse du Moujik (The Muzhik’s Dance · Tanz des Muzhik)

No. 12 from Images (Suite No. 4 op. 39 no. 3)

FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN

15 Valse in A minor “Grande Valse brillante” op. 34 no. 2 | Lento

FRED HERSCH (*1955)

16 Nocturne for the Left Hand Alone, No. 1 from Three Character Studies, Flowing, quasi rubato

JEAN-MICHEL DAMASE (1928–2013)

17 Fantaisie pour harpe, sur des motifs des Contes d’Hoffmann d’Offenbach | Maestoso

(Fantasy for Harp on Themes from Offenbach’s The Tales of Hoffmann)

FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN

18 Nocturne in F sharp minor op. 48 no. 2 | Andantino