Pianist Yulianna Avdeeva to Release New Album LISZT: METANOIA, Recording of Liszt's Late Piano Works

Internationally renowned pianist Yulianna Avdeeva, Gold Medalist of the 2010 International Chopin Piano Competition, will release her new album, Liszt: Metanoia (a fundamental change of mind or lifestyle, usually following a spiritual conversion). Avdeeva's fourth release on Petatone, Metanoia is a profound exploration of the late piano works of Franz Liszt, tracing his radical transformation from virtuoso to visionary. It is available Aug. 28 on CD and all digital platforms.

Liszt's late works mark a decisive break with traditional musical language and form, opening the door to 20th-century modernism through bold harmonic experimentation, compressed structures, and strikingly dissonant sonorities. His life took a radical turn in 1865, when he embraced his Catholic faith and received the four Minor Orders of the Catholic Church in Rome, marking a profound transformation from star pianist to humble Abbé.

Stripped of conventional melodic development, the brief but intense works from Liszt's late period, recorded here, convey deep existential reflection, touching on themes of faith, mortality, and the human condition. Initially met with resistance, they would later become a major influence on composers such as Bartók, Scriabin, Debussy, and Ravel. Many of these compositions were published long after Liszt's death, and have taken their rightful place as truly innovative works.

For Avdeeva, Liszt's music is never purely virtuosic, but an existential inquiry into the deepest aspects of human experience - light and darkness, faith and doubt, life and death. She considers these late works "brief expressions on what it means to be human, often including the darker side of the soul," ultimately revealing a composer who continually expanded the possibilities of musical thought and expression.

Before the late works, Avdeeva offers her interpretation of the earlier Sonata in B Minor, the pinnacle of Liszt's artistic expression. "By delving into this music, I discovered a philosophical depth that mirrored the transformation of Liszt's own life," she writes in her notes. "This journey has allowed me to reevaluate his earlier works, recognizing that the introspection of his late pieces also existed in his earlier compositions."

Avdeeva returns to PENTATONE after a string of critically acclaimed releases: her label debut Resilience, followed by Chopin: Voyage, and Shostakovich: 24 Preludes and Fugues, Op. 87. Together, these recordings have garnered international awards and widespread acclaim around the world.

Yulianna Avdeeva, Liszt: Metanoia Track List

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)

Piano Sonata in B Minor, S. 178

01) I. Lento assai - Allegro energico (3:11)
02) II. Grandioso - Recitativo (7:52)
03) III. Andante sostenuto (6:40)
04) IV. Allegro energico - Andante sostenuto - Lento assai (10:16)

05) La lugubre gondola II, S. 200/2 (7:47)
06) Bagatelle sans tonalité, S. 216a (2:55)
07) Nuages gris, S. 199 (2:36)
08) Csárdás macabre, S. 224 (7:39)
09) R.W. - Venezia, S. 201 (3:00)
10) Hungarian Rhapsody No. 17, S. 244/17 (2:44)
11) Unstern! - Sinistre, S. 208 (5:37)

2 Légendes, S. 175
12) No. 2, St François de Paule: Marchant sur les flots (8:14)

Total playing time: 68:39