Piano concertos Nos. 2 and 4 (2004)

Giovanni Paisiello stands head and shoulders above the other Italian composers of his generation. A pupil of the Neapolitan School, he had a supreme gift for melody, allied with a highly individual style and idiom that foreshadow Haydn and Beethoven. Paisiellos eight keyboard concertos, written to commission for the nobility, clearly show that he must have been an excellent pianist and harpsichordist. In contrast with the classical poise and restraint of the Second Concerto, the Fourth Concerto is an extraordinary piece, with an opening Allegro comparable to Haydns Sturm und Drang works, and a solemn slow movement that can only be likened to the young Beethoven. (bron: Naxos)