Staffan Scheja plays Stenhammar

Sensommarnatter (Late Summer Nights), Op.33

Tre Fantasier (Three Fantasies), Op.11

Pianosonat (Piano Sonata) in G minor

Staffan Scheja (piano)

The first recording for Altara by Staffan Scheja concentrates on the piano music of his fellow countryman Wilhelm Stenhammar.

Stenhammar’s music, beautifully written for the instrument is sadly underrepresented on disc today and these fresh and detailed performances by one of the leading Swedish pianists of the day is a valuable addition to the catalogue.

Late Summer Nights and the Three Fantasies are probably Stenhammar’s greatest pieces for piano with attractive melodies, here performed with great feeling and warmth.

'With a commanding technique, a sure feel for the late Romantic idiom, and a pronounced disinclination to yield to long, lyrical themes without a struggle, Scheja makes a very convincing case for the music here. The opening five-movement suite Late Summer Nights is shimmering and seductive in his hands, and the closing four-movement G minor Piano Sonata is muscular and rigorous'.

Review on www.allmusic.com - February 2007