Ignaz Anton Ladurner (1766-1839)

Works for Piano for Two and Four Hands
Ignaz Anton Ladurner published three works for piano duet in Paris. His opus 2 is still largely in the spirit of his great hero Mozart, although it already reveals certain characteristics of Ladurner’s personal style. In any case this piece is an elegant, extremely original and impressive composition that certainly explains why Ladurner created such a stir with his compositions in the last decade of the 18th century. His virtuoso touch shows up even more in the brilliant rondo “Gai, gai,” which Ladurner must have performed to great effect in the Parisian salons. The piece probably dates from his first years in Paris, when he was all the rage particularly as a piano virtuoso. The fact that an engraving of his portrait was printed for his presumably many admirers, even before his compositions appeared in published form, demonstrates how impressive his playing and his elegant appearance must have been. The Sonata for Piano Duet op. 6, probably printed in Paris around 1802, is perhaps Ladurner’s best composition. It is utterly astonishing how quickly Ladurner, coming from a tiny village in South Tyrol, was able to appropriate a specifically French feeling, even to the extent that it became his entirely personal form of expression. Through his compositions and his large numbers of pupils, including some famous future composers such as Daniel François Esprit Auber (1782-1871), Ladurner became one of the leading pioneers of early Romantic French music.

Track 7, 3:48
Sonate in c-minor
Grave.Andantino.Allegro brillante