Weinberg’s fraught biography is reflected in many of the piano works which occupied the earlier part of his career. Some exemplify the extreme pressures placed on him and others to conform to official diktat – a period when he was arrested for ‘Jewish bourgeois nationalism’ – whilst others reveal the rich inspiration of folkloric music.

The second volume of the complete piano works ranges in date from 1950-55. The Partita, Op.54 is notable for its alternation of the intimate and the intensely dramatic, whereas the Sonatina, Op.49 is lyrical, though never straightforward. The Piano Sonata No.4, Op.56 fuses folk inspiration, rhythmic vivacity and melancholy in a profoundly personal way.

2008 Grammy Nominee for Best Instrumental Soloist without Orchestra for 20th Century Piano Sonatas on Naxos Records, Allison Brewster Franzetti has received international acclaim from critics and audiences alike for stunning virtuosity and musicality.