Dame Myra Hess

by Mark Ainley / Feature / Recordings / No Comments / February 25, 2020

Our perceptions of many artists are formed by the recordings we’ve heard, biographical details that have been publicized, and photographs that we’ve seen – and as always, while these can give us a snapshot of

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The Magnificent Marian Filar

by Mark Ainley / Feature / Recordings / No Comments / December 31, 2019

It is a sad reality that a great many supremely gifted musicians did not have careers that their talent might have warranted, with some of these great musicians having had to face some tremendous adversity.

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Favourite Releases of 2019

by Mark Ainley / Recordings / Review / No Comments / December 31, 2019

I’ve stated previously that I believe we are living in the best time for the availability of historical recordings and 2019 was a banner year that proved that point. We saw increasing numbers of stellar

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Jascha Spivakovsky: A Romantic Rediscovered

by Mark Ainley / Feature / Recordings / 2 Comments / November 1, 2019

Our appreciation of pianists of the past is based primarily on their recordings. How amazing that in this age of digital technology we can listen to the actual playing of pianists born and trained in

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The Resplendent Rosita Renard

by Mark Ainley / Feature / Recordings / 4 Comments / September 30, 2019

It is a tremendous blessing that recording technology has allowed the playing of great musicians of the past to be preserved for future generations. In some cases, we are able to hear performances that came

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Alfred Cortot and the Chopin Etudes

by Mark Ainley / Feature / Recordings / 2 Comments / September 26, 2019

Alfred Cortot was a supreme interpreter of Chopin – he studied with the composer’s pupil Émile Descombes – and fortunately he left us many recordings made over the course of several decades. At times his

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Marcelle Meyer’s Last Records: World Premiere Vinyl Release

by Mark Ainley / Feature / Recordings / Review / 3 Comments / September 5, 2019

Anyone who explores historical recordings is interested in ‘what might have been’ – opportunities for recordings that never transpired, missed chances that were not realized. Fortunately in some cases, new technology and the hard work

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Putting It Together: 78rpm Disc Editing

by Mark Ainley / Feature / Recordings / No Comments / September 3, 2019

I’ve recently been uploading some fantastic transfers of 78rpm discs made by Tom Jardine, who has generously allowed me to put them on my YouTube channel. In a couple of cases, joining one side of

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The Piano Files 10th Anniversary

by Mark Ainley / Feature / Recordings / 2 Comments / July 8, 2019

When I began my Facebook page The Piano Files with Mark Ainley ten years ago, I had no idea that it would grow to the extent that it has – that wasn’t the intention. It

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Harold Bauer

by Mark Ainley / Feature / Recordings / 2 Comments / July 1, 2019

“My earliest reaction to music, as far as I can recall, was one of fascinated terror.” It seems amazing that a pianist who produced one of the loveliest sonorities ever captured on record would have

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