Camille Saint-Saëns: Transcriptions performed by Cyprien Katsaris

With this new project, offering more than two hours of music and a bonus special cinematographic feature, Cyprien Katsaris immerses us in the surprise-filled world of Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921), with transcriptions, sometimes rare, of great symphonic works and a number of original pieces. For Cyprien Katsaris, the hundredth anniversary of the death of Camille Saint-Saëns offered the perfect opportunity to fill a void: other than in the case of Leopold Godowsky’s transcription of his famous The Swan, the French composer predeceased his own discography. Entranced by Saint-Saëns’ music right from his days at the ‘Conservatoire Supérieur de Paris’, to which he gained admission on the strength of the magnificent Allegro appassionato, at a time when he was equally spellbound by the Toccata, thanks to the fabled recording by his Professor Monique de la Bruchollerie, as by the concertos and other pieces, Cyprien Katsaris had always entertained the prospect of a recording dedicated solely to this extraordinary composer.

This handsomely produced and recorded release is one of my recordings of the year, and another feather in the cap of a remarkable musician – and entrepreneur. — Gramophone Magazine, Awards Issue 2022