Ferruccio Busoni, pianist

with pianist Isidor Philipp and composer Charles Widor.

One of the greatest of all piano virtuosi, Busoni is seen here in the lobby of his hotel in Paris on one of his numerous tours.  Busoni was also a remarkable composer -- although his strange music takes a bit of getting used to.  Among his works is a superb Divertimento for flute and chamber orchestra. 

Widor, although mostly known for his organ symphonies, composed one of finest pieces in the French Romantic repertoire for flute, his Suite for flute and piano. 

Busoni and Isidor Philipp had a special bond: their common enthusiasm for the music of Charles Valentin Alkan -- the isolated 19th Century composer and pianist.  Busoni considered Alkan as one of the five great composers for the piano that followed Beethoven -- the others being Brahms, Schuman, Chopin and Liszt.  Philipp, who knew Alkan well in his (Philipp's) youth, edited all of Alkan's music.  Alkan's brother, Henri, was a flutist.  Isabelle owns a 19th Century wooden flute that bears the Alkan's original family name, Morhange -- and may have belonged to Henri Alkan.