Jean-François Antonioli, the gifted young virtuoso pianist from Lausanne, presents his first recording of bravura works from the 19th century.

With brilliance and vivacity he brings new life to two neglected late Romantic compositions by Swiss composer Joseph Joachim Raff (1822–1882): the Piano Concerto in C Minor, Op. 185, dedicated to Hans von Bülow, and the formally innovative concertino Ode to Spring, Op. 76. Antonioli contrasts these two finely orchestrated works with the bravura score of Ferruccio Busoni’s (1866–1924) Concert Piece, Op. 31a, composed in 1890. These works reveal a number of interesting bonds, particularly due to the strong influence of Liszt on both of the composers. The Lausanne Chamber Orchestra under the direction of its principal conductor Lawrence Foster spiritedly plays the splendid orchestra parts.