Polish-born pianist Diana Jaworska presents this album of works by Schumann, Beethoven, and Liszt. The cornerstone of this release is Schumann’s Carnaval, Op. 9. The work, subtitled Scenes mignonnes sur quatre notes (Little Scenes on Four Notes) consists of 21 short pieces representing masked revelers at Carnival, a festival that takes place before Lent. The individual pieces are connected by a recurring motif. The four notes are encoded puzzles, and Schumann predicted that “deciphering my masked ball will be a real game for you.” Born in Poland in 1968, Diana Jaworska now lives in lives in Southern France, where she teaches the piano, performs concerts, makes recordings, and composes her own works.
