KARL WEIGL (1881-1949): 6 Fantasies, The Isle of the Dead, Pictures and Tales, Op. 2, Dance of the Furies, Night Fantasies, Op. 13.

Description: A full disc of discoveries in late German Romanticism, all but the evocative, moody and febrile Night Fantasies (1911) being world premiere recordings. The Isle of the Dead (1903) predates Rachmaninov's by five years but has a lot of the same stifled, claustrophobic feel. Schumann's Kinderszenen are the ultimate source for the children-inspired Pictures and Tales of 1909. The other good-sized work is the 1942 Fantasies, written after his emigration to the U.S., a calm and reflective suite of pieces which Weigl considered calling Day Fantasies as it does seem to be the positive of Night Fantasies' dark negative. Joseph Banowetz (piano).