Daniel Steibelt, a pianist and composer, provoked opposing criticism and attitude since his lifetime. Even today, some people condemn him as a mediocre composer and charlatan, while others regard him as a virtuoso, a brilliant pianist and genius. It is a fact that he introduced some innovations in his works, which were later used by many composers including Beethoven and Schubert (for example, his technique Tremulando). So far there is no accurate catalogue of Steibelt’s works, but he is the author of over 100 sonatas, piano quintets, 8 piano concertos, numerous works for harp, operas, ballets, fantasies, variations... It is believed that he was the first to give the title Impromptu to a piano piece.
The works in this program were composed in different periods of his life. For some of his pieces, it is difficult to determine the exact date of their creation, but they all show the main characteristics of his works: elegance, innovation in the sound, innovation (he introduced signs in the music score for marking the pedals), superb pianistic finds, melodic twist of sounds that resemble Chopin’s style in its beauty and plasticity...
By selecting the works of Daniel Steibelt, Anna Petrova-Forster reaffirms her affinity for lesser known or rarely performed works and composers. It is due to her that Gega New released the brilliant recordings of piano pieces by the Austrian composer Josef Matthias Hauer – who is also a rarely performed author.