Including premiere recordings, this programme provides us with a privileged opportunity to engage with 36 of Ludwig van Beethoven’s rarely heard sketches, variations and briefest of compositions, even the earliest of which have much to teach us about the emergence of his unique voice and style. The range of Beethoven’s musical experimentation reveals a lasting interest in counterpoint, as well as practical pages such as cadenzas for a Mozart concerto, an incomplete sonata and a second version of the famous bagatelle Für Elise. A significant supplement to his greatest works, these miniatures bring the full arc of Beethoven’s singular genius into ever clearer focus.

It is rare that anyone can boast world premiere recordings of music by Beethoven, but this album can claim premieres with both the Pastorella in C major and Sketch in A major. Even beside these new gems, this programme is full of fragments and miniatures that are hardly ever heard, providing a uniquely special addition to the Naxos project of presenting Beethoven’s entire oeuvre.