Chopin: 4 Scherzos Antonio Pompa-Baldi

• Frédéric Chopin (1810 - 1849): Scherzo No. 1 in B Minor:
• 1 Chopin: Scherzo No. 1 in B Minor: Op. 20, B. 65 10:45
• Scherzo No. 2 in B-Flat Minor:
• 2 Chopin: Scherzo No. 2 in B-Flat Minor: Op. 31, B. 111 10:56
• Scherzo No. 3 in C-Sharp Minor:
• 3 Chopin: Scherzo No. 3 in C-Sharp Minor: Op. 39, B. 125 07:35
• Scherzo No. 4 in E Major:
• 4 Chopin: Scherzo No. 4 in E Major: Op. 54, B. 148 11:58
• Total Runtime 41:14

Info for Chopin: 4 Scherzos

In his program notes for the album, Pompa-Baldi writes: Among the large-scale works that Frederic Chopin wrote for the piano, the four Scherzos occupy a unique and fascinating place. The term scherzo—Italian for “joke”—had long been used to describe a light, playful movement, often replacing the minuet in Classical symphonies and sonatas. Yet in Chopin’s hands the genre is transformed into something far more dramatic and expansive: music of explosive energy, passionate intensity, and profound poetry.

The first three Scherzos share an unmistakable impetuous spirit. Their openings burst forth with a sense of urgency that feels almost orchestral in its sweep, immediately establishing a world of heightened emotion. The contrasts within these works are striking: stormy passages of dazzling virtuosity give way to lyrical episodes of remarkable tenderness and introspection. In this sense, Chopin creates vast emotional landscapes within relatively concise forms.

The central sections often provide moments of repose—almost like visions glimpsed through a storm. In both the Second and Third Scherzos, the luminous chorale-like episodes evoke an atmosphere of quiet contemplation, gradually building up to a noble and expansive lyricism. These moments do not diminish the dramatic tension; rather, they intensify it, framing the surrounding turbulence with a sense of poetic depth.

The Fourth Scherzo stands somewhat apart in character. Here, one senses an elegance and lightness reminiscent of Felix Mendelssohn and his celebrated fairy-like scherzos. The music sparkles with wit and buoyancy, yet it remains unmistakably Chopinesque in its texture and pianistic imagination. The writing for the instrument retains Chopin’s uniquely fluid brilliance, while the lyrical middle section and the radiant coda reveal the composer’s unmistakable voice—warm, expressive, and deeply poetic.

Taken together, the four Scherzos represent for me the quintessential genius of Chopin. They are perfectly framed within a clear and compelling formal structure, yet within that structure the composer preserves an extraordinary freedom of invention. At their finest moments, these works seem to capture inspiration in its purest form: impetuous, passionate, and utterly original. — Antonio Pompa-Baldi

“No praise could be high enough for Pompa-Baldi’s pianism, which is of an endlessly enticing elegance and finesse.” - Gramophone

“There was something unusually gripping about Pompa-Baldi’s Chopin. Here was a pianist with spectacular technique who also projected great affect. It’s always a surprise to hear new ideas in a piece that has become such a cliché, but the evening was full of these revelations.” - Boston Musical Intelligencer

Antonio Pompa-Baldi, piano, Steinway Model D

Antonio Pompa-Baldi
Born and raised in Foggia, Italy, Antonio Pompa-Baldi won the Cleveland International Piano Competition in 1999 and embarked on a career that continues to extend across five continents. A top prize winner at the 1998 Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud Competition of Paris, France, Antonio Pompa-Baldi also won a silver medal at the 2001 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. Mr. Pompa-Baldi appears regularly at the world's major concert venues including New York's Carnegie Hall, Cleveland's Severance Hall, Milan's Sala Verdi, Boston's Symphony Hall, and Paris' Salle Pleyel, to name a few.

He has collaborated with leading conductors including Hans Graf, James Conlon, Miguel Harth-Bedoya, and Keith Lockhart, performing with the Houston Symphony, Colorado Symphony, Berliner Symphoniker, Orchestre National de Paris-Radio France, National Orchestra of Ukraine, Fort Worth Symphony, among many others.

Notable recital engagements took place in Beijing, Seoul , Paris, London, Chicago, and Houston. Among recent orchestral appearances, Mr. Pompa- Baldi performed with the Santo Domingo Festival Orchestra under Maestro Benjamin Zander, the National Symphony of Ecuador, and the Johannesburg and Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestras in South Africa. Last season's recitals included Nancy (France), Cleveland (OH), San Francisco (Liszt Society Festival), Hong Kong, and Macao.

Upcoming engagements include a recital in Fort Worth, TX, in memory of Van Cliburn, performances with the Eugene Symphony, OR, the Nova Scotia Symphony (Canada), and the Cheyenne Symphony, a tour of South Africa, including appearances with the Johannesburg and Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestras, and recitals in Jerusalem, San Jose, Cleveland, Poland, and China.

Mr. Pompa-Baldi's recording catalogue features an all-Brahms disc (Azica), and a recital from his Cliburn Competition performances (Harmonia Mundi).

He has recorded 17 CDs for Centaur Records: the Josef Rheinberger Piano Sonatas; the entire piano output of Edward Grieg, in 12 volumes; an all-Rachmaninoff CD; an all-Schumann album; a live recital in Cleveland; and the first volume of the Hummel Piano Sonatas.

Soon-to-be-released by Centaur is the second volume of the Hummel Sonatas.

Mr. Pompa-Baldi was recently recorded live in recital at the Stellenbosch Conservatory, South Africa, in a program including, among others, the complete set of Chopin's Etudes Op.10. This CD will soon be released by the TwoPianists label.

For the Steinway label, Pompa-Baldi recorded a disc of songs by Francis Poulenc and Edith Piaf, arranged for solo piano, to commemorate the 50th year of the passing of both French musical icons. The album, titled "The Rascal and the Sparrow: Poulenc meets Piaf", released in September 2013, received unanimous praise in Classical Music's most esteemed review sites.

Mr. Pompa-Baldi has been seen and heard many times on French National Television, Radio-France, Ukrainian National Television, Cleveland's WCLV, Boston's WGBH, and National Public Radio's "Performance Today". He was featured in the PBS documentary on the Eleventh Van Cliburn International Piano Competition "Playing on the Edge", which premiered in October 2001 in USA and Canada.

Mr. Pompa-Baldi appeared again on PBS in the documentary "Concerto: A sense of Self", featuring his performance of Prokofiev's Third Piano Concerto with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and James Conlon. This performance was also seen on French National Television in May, 2003, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Prokofiev's death, as well as throughout Europe.

Antonio Pompa-Baldi is a Steinway Artist. He serves as Distinguished Professor of Piano at the Cleveland Institute of Music, and gives master- classes around the world, both in conjunction with his performing engagements, and at summer festivals including Piano Fest in the Hamptons, TCU-Cliburn Institute, Southeastern Piano Festival (University of South Carolina School of Music), Paisiello Academy (Lucera, Italy), Amalfi Coast Festival, and Napolinova Academy (Naples, Italy). He helped found the Academia Manuel Rueda in Santo Domingo, where he also gives regular masterclasses.

He is often invited to judge international piano competitions, and has served as president of the jury for the San Jose International Piano Competition, CA since 2006. His students have been prizewinners in important competitions such as Marguerite Long, Hilton Head, José Iturbi, Isang Yun, and Gina Bachauer.

Booklet for Chopin: 4 Scherzos