Certainly the most glamorous of the Matthay students, Harriet Cohen was also the most extrovert and to the general public was known as a socialite as much as a pianist. Her friends included George Bernard Shaw and Ramsay MacDonald and she became notorious as the lover of the married Arnold Bax.

Behind this apparently superficial exterior lay a surprising intellect and her repertoire favoured Bach and earlier music or contemporary music (much of it dedicated to her) rather than the more popular, and frequently played, romantic repertoire.

Few of her recordings have been reissued on CD so this will be an eagerly awaited set. It includes the first ever (acoustic) recording of Bach’s D minor concerto, as well as the later post-war remake, and also several of the works Bax wrote for her.

Contents:
CD 1 [77'21]
J S Bach
- Keyboard Concerto No 1 in D minor BWV1052
Orchestra conducted by Sir Henry Wood
(1924)
- The Well-Tempered Clavier Book I: Preludes & Fugues Nos 1-9, BWV846-854
(1928)

J S Bach/Rummel
- Sanctify us by thy goodness, from Cantata No.22
(1928)

J S Bach/Cohen
- Beloved Jesus, we are here BWV731
(1928)

CD 2 [76’13]
J S Bach
- Keyboard Concerto No.1 in D minor BWV1052
Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Walter Susskind
(1946)
- Prelude & Fugue No 4 BWV849 from WTC Book 1
(1947)

J S Bach/Cohen
- Sanctify us by thy goodness
- Beloved Jesus, we are here
- Up! Arouse thee!
(1935)

J S Bach/Petri
- Fantasia (Praeludium) in C minor BWV921
(1935)

Mozart
- Piano Sonata No.10 in C major K330
(1932)

Chopin
- Nocturne Op.15 No.1
- Nouvelles Études Nos 1 & 3
(1943)

- Étude Op.25 No.7
(1928)

CD 3 [78’41]
Brahms
- Ballade in D minor Op.10 No.1
- Intermezzo in B flat major Op.76 No.4
(1930)

Debussy
- Clair de lune
- La cathédrale engloutie, No.10 from Préludes Book I
(1948)

De Falla
- Andaluza
- The Fisherman’s Tale
- The Miller’s Dance
(1943)

Kabalevsky
- Sonatina in C major Op.13 No.1
(1943)

Shostakovich
- Prelude in E flat minor Op.34 No.14
(1943)

Gibbons
- Ayre – Alman – Toy – Coranto – Mr Sanders His Delight
(1947)

Gibbons/Vaughan Williams
- Hymn Tune Prelude on Song 13
(1947)

Bax
- Paean
(1938)
- A Hill Tune
(1942)
- A Mountain Mood
(1942)
- Morning Song (Maytime in Sussex)
Orchestra conducted by Sir Malcolm Sargent
(1947)

- The Oliver Theme, from the film Oliver Twist
Philharmonia Orchestra cond. Muir Mathieson
(1948)

Bath
- Cornish Rhapsody, from the film Love Story
London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Hubert Bath
(1944)