Memoires, the new 2-CD set from Genuin by the Swiss pianist Sebastian Benda (1926-2003), includes works by Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Liszt, Martin, Mussorgsky, and 5 pieces by Villa-Lobos, recorded from 1961 to 1994.
Though the back of the CD only says "Selected works" of Villa-Lobos, the actual tracks are:
- Alma brasileira
- Festa no sertão
- Lenda do caboclo
- Impressões seresteiras
- Dança do indio branco
These pieces were recorded in 1981.
Benda spent nearly 30 years (1952-1981) in Brazil, though he traveled extensively in Europe during that period as well. During that time he had a significant impact on the musical life of the country. In a short note on Villa-Lobos that Benda provides for the liner notes, he says this about Brazil's greatest composer:
Villa-Lobos’s
personality
is
energetic
and
highly
authentic;
his
music
is
the
music
of
Brazil,
the
music
of
the
jungle
and
the
sertão,
the
dry
outback
in
the
northeast,
and
the
music
of
the
sea.
It
describes
the
unique
characteristics
of
the
people,
the
way
of
life
and
the
natural
environment
of
Brazil
and
is
uncommonly
vital
and
impressive.
He
transforms
the
folklore,
which
has
a
regional
character
at
its
center,
into
a
universal
language
whose
message
reaches
audiences
on
all
continents
with
ease.
Here is Benda in Sao Paulo in 1952:
I know Benda best from his chamber music recordings (especially the Naxos recording of the Martinu cello sonatas with his son Christian). This wide-ranging collection shows he was a gifted pianist and musician.
