Spencer Klymyshyn

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)

Sonetto 104 del Petrarca, Années de Pèlerinage, Second year, Italy, S.161 (Liszt)

Années de pèlerinage (Years of Pilgrimage) (S.160, S.161, S.162, S.163) is a set of three suites for solo piano by Franz Liszt. Sonetto 104 forms part of the “Deuxième année: Italie” (“Second Year: Italy”), S.161 and was composed between 1837 and 1849 and published in 1858 by Schott. Nos. 4 to 6 are revisions of Tre sonetti del Petrarca (Three sonnets of Petrarch), which was composed around 1839–1846 and published in 1846.

Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849)

Nocturne No. 1, Op 48 (Chopin)

The Nocturnes, Op. 48 are a set of two nocturnes for solo piano written by Frédéric Chopin in 1841 and published the following year in 1842. They are dedicated to Mlle. Laure Duperré.

Aaron Copland (1900-1990)

Piano Variations (Copland)

The Piano Variations of American composer Aaron Copland were written for piano solo from January to October 1930. They were dedicated to American writer and literary critic Gerald Sykes (c. 1904–1984), and were originally published in 1932 by Cos Cob Press, which merged with Arrow Music Press in 1938 and was taken over by Boosey & Hawkes in 1956.

Samuel Barber (1910-1981)

Excursions, Op. 20 (Barber)

i Un poco allegro, ii In slow blues tempo, iii Allegretto, iv Exuberant and joyous barn dance

Excursions, Op. 20, is the first published solo piano piece by Samuel Barber. Barber himself explains: “These are ‘Excursions’ in small classical forms into regional American idioms. Their rhythmic characteristics, as well as their source in folk material and their scoring, reminiscent of local instruments are easily recognized.” This is typical of neo-Romantic composers such as Barber.

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)

Harmonies poétiques et religieuses, S.173 (Liszt)

i Invocation;
ii Ave Maria;
iii Bénédiction de Dieu dans la solitude;
iv Pensée des morts;
v Pater Noster;
vi Hymne de l'enfant à son réveil;
vii Funérailles;
viii Miserere, d'après Palestrina;
ix La lampe du temple;
x Cantique d'amour

Harmonies poétiques et religieuses (Poetic and Religious Harmonies), S.173, is a cycle of piano pieces written by Franz Liszt at Woronińce (Voronivtsi, the Polish-Ukrainian country estate of Liszt’s mistress Princess Carolyne von Sayn-Wittgenstein) in 1847, and published in 1853. The pieces are inspired by the poetry of Alphonse de Lamartine, as was Liszt’s symphonic poem Les Préludes.

Performers

Spencer Klymyshyn - Piano

Named by the Canadian Broadcast Corporation as one of Canada’s 30 top classical musicians under 30 and praised by International Piano Magazine for his “sensitive and cultivated handling” of melody, pianist Spencer Klymyshyn is known for his beautiful and nuanced sound. Spencer has won numerous awards and recognitions in national competitions. In 2023, Spencer placed 2nd at the Liszt Society International Piano Competition. In 2019, Spencer was the national winner at the Federation of Canadian Music Festivals (FCMF) National Music Competition. He was also, in both 2017 and 2018, a national first place award winner at the Canadian Music Competition. Spencer is the recipient of the Dasha Shenkman Award from the Canadian Centennial Scholarship Fund for 2023-2024.