Pianist Brigitte Poulin presents “Játékok” (Games) by György Kurtág—a deeply personal, lifelong collection of miniature works that explore memory, play, and the weight of tradition. Composed over several decades, these pieces form an evolving musical diary, at once whimsical and profound. Guided by nostalgia and a desire to converse with the past, Kurtág pays homage to the composers, friends, and influences who shaped him—Bach, Schumann, Bartók, and others—through gestures drawn from folklore, Gregorian chant, spoken rhythms, and improvisation.
In this recording, Poulin curates a unique path through Játékok, structuring the album into five “Acts” that reflect the emotional and spiritual breadth of the cycle: Heaven and Hell, The Human World, To Márta Kurtág, Tribute—In Memory of…, and Nature and Transformation. Among these selections are several world premiere recordings.
Montreal-based pianist Brigitte Poulin is an accomplished soloist, chamber musician, accompanist, and teacher whose repertoire spans from the invention to the deconstruction of the piano. In addition to this recording of György Kurtág: Játékok, she is set to release Sayeh-Roshan, an album of new Persian works with contrabassist Ali Yazdanfar, Behnoosh Behnamnia, and Bamdad Fotouhi. Her notable collaborations include Les Noces with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal under Kent Nagano, Pierrot lunaire with Patricia Kopatchinskaja, and chamber performances with Annalee Patipatanakoon, Lynn Harrell, and Silvia Mandolini. She teaches at McGill University’s Schulich School of Music, is a longtime faculty member at Orford Musique, and appears on recordings for Leaf Music, Naxos, ATMA Classique, and Dame.
György Kurtág: Játékok is available on all streaming platforms.
The Játékok are an autobiographical journey, a laboratory of miniatures that György Kurtág (1926*) composed throughout his career of more than 50 years. Brigitte Poulin has carefully chosen a route which, animated by nostalgia and in dialogue with the past, “plays” with tradition. There we find tributes to different masters and friends of the past, folklore, Gregorian chant, declamation, and improvised gestures
Composer of Jewish origin, György Kurtág is one of the main Hungarian composers to have survived the communist regime. He obtained international recognition following its dissolution. Preferring brief forms, his works are mainly dedicated to small ensembles, focused on essential, dramatic effectiveness. Professor of piano and chamber music, his pedagogy is at the center of his creation. It was from his teaching that his Játékok found their first inspiration.
Seeking to rediscover the spirit of the child who has fun playing the piano, Játékok are at the same time music that touches the feeling that everything is also ending, even as the music still resonates with the whispered voices of people laughing all around.
(Alex Ross, The rest is noise)