1 Overview: companies and methods

Some of Ernő Dohnányi's commercially released recordings were made by international labels, and others by smaller, lesser-known Hungarian and international recording companies. In the acoustic era, he did not perform on gramophone discs but recorded hours of music on piano rolls, which were more highly regarded by pianists at the time.²³

As János Mácsai's rollography reveals, Dohnányi recorded piano rolls for three of the major piano companies of the time: Welte, Hupfeld and Ampico.²⁴ Dohnányi's more than forty piano rolls constitute a considerable repertoire, especially when compared with, for example, Bartók's eight piano rolls: four commercially available Welte rolls²⁵ and four other contemporary transfers of Bartók's piano rolls.²⁶ It is perhaps this surprisingly high number that may account for Peter Phillips' erroneous estimate of the number of Dohnányi's piano rolls as being greater than the number of his later recordings.²⁷

Dohnányi's relationship with the record companies was ambiguous: following the introduction of the electronic recording around 1925, he was commissioned to make recordings for several major, internationally renowned, and a few smaller, local companies. Dohnányi was still touring relatively extensively in the mid-1920s,²⁸ but, as Bálint Vázsonyi points out, after 1925, as his duties in Budapest increased, he was less and less able to be active in the international music scene. Vázsonyi attributes this to the fact that Dohnányi never really caught the attention of major international record companies.²⁹ Kocsis, on the other hand, believes that Dohnányi was not pleased with the work of smaller record companies, as they were not necessarily able to ensure adequate distribution and reissues.³⁰ At this point, however, it is worth taking a closer look at the relationship between Dohnányi and the record companies.

Eternola Mechanikai Rt. [Eternola Mechanic Ltd.], a business of local importance run by Gyula Liedl, was a Hungarian company that manufactured and distributed discs with the Eternola Edison Bell label. The company was founded in 1927, and in the autumn of 1928 it started its recording activities after signing a contract with a subsidiary of the British record company Edison Bell, which had been set up to promote international expansion.³¹ The art director of the company was the conductor Endre Hajós, and the recordings were made in Budapest, but the records were pressed in London and later in Yugoslavia.³² In October 1928, Paul Voigt (1901–1981), Edison Bell's sound engineer, made 215 recordings in Budapest, and there was at least one more recording session in Hungary later, but the company did not survive the Great Depression. The Hungarian record company immediately added Dohnányi's recording to its repertoire, and it was later released by the British parent company.

In the 1930s, Dohnányi made some recordings for the Hungarian recording firm Durium Hanglemez Kereskedelmi Kft. Because of the local significance of this firm and the Hungarian repertoire Dohnányi recorded, these recordings were unable to reach an international audience; John Wilbraham even stated that Dohnányi did not make any recordings between his 1931 HMV and 1945 Columbia recordings.³³ It is no surprise that Dohnányi cooperated with the Durium Hanglemez Kereskedelmi Kft., which distributed several labels, among others Patria and Durium-Patria. He had become the chief music director of Hungarian Radio in 1931, and Durium Hanglemez Kereskedelmi Kft. was in close cooperation with Hungarian Radio; their recordings were made in the studio of Hungarian Radio from 1934 onwards.³⁴ The record company run by Péter Pál Kelen focused more on topflight Hungarian musicians, while younger classical music performers such as Imre Ungár (1909–1972, a blind pianist and laureate of the 1932 Warsaw Chopin Competition), Ede Zathureczky (1903–1959, a violinist and pupil of Jenő Hubay) or the Dohnányi pupil György Faragó (1913–1944, winner of the Concours Fauré in 1939) were featured on the releases of Radiola, a competitor of Durium.³⁵

However, it is rather surprising given the context of the Hungarian recording scene between the two world wars that while György Faragó, for example, had at least 30 recordings made by Radiola, Durium, which was closely linked to Hungarian Radio, produced only five published recordings of Ernő Dohnányi's performances. It is even more striking that, according to our current data, neither Dohnányi's piano-playing, nor his conducting, nor his readings were included in the Sound Museum of Hungarian Radio that was released on disc in the joint project by the Radio and Durium as “Historical Recordings.”³⁶

We have no information about Dohnányi's reply but sadly have to note that the recordings mentioned in the letter were never completed, or at least not released on disc. The exclusive Hungarophon series by Péter Pál Kelen was also intended to document Ernő Dohnányi's activities as a performer and composer, but as Enikő Veöreös has revealed, the series had started but was never completed.³⁸ It is very difficult to find an explanation for the fact that Hungarian Radio, which had the highest quality recording studios of the era in Hungary and which was in close cooperation with a record company, did not release any Dohnányi recordings. Perhaps Dohnányi declined the offer so as not to be accused of becoming part of the Radio's Sound Museum while he himself worked as chief music director. Or maybe Hungarian Radio's management believed they had plenty of time to document the artistic performance of their chief music director? Or were they hoping that the recordings on wax discs – later destroyed during the siege of Budapest – would eventually be transferred onto a more permanent material? We have no answers to these questions.

The elder composer's personal network of contacts played a crucial role in Dohnányi's post-1945 recordings. The composer-pianist, who had fled Hungary, was unable to attract the attention of the market-oriented record companies, who were looking for new faces after the World War. The recordings made after 1945 were thus the result of the efforts of Dohnányi's former students, and in particular his manager, Andrew (Andor) Schulhof.³⁹ According to the recollections of Belle Schulhof, her husband seized every opportunity to organize recording sessions for Dohnányi, and he personally accompanied him to New York and London.⁴⁰

There is a very good explanation as to why Remington Records Inc., which operated between 1950 and 1957, was the one responsible for Dohnányi's first American recordings.⁴¹ Remington was not only founded and run almost exclusively by professionals of Hungarian origin, but also by a former Dohnányi pupil. The company was founded by Donald H. Gabor (1912–1980) to promote European classical music culture in the United States.⁴² Remington Records Inc. produced and distributed LPs, and their releases were in the low-price range among the records of the era. They continued to make recordings not only in the US but also in Vienna (1950–1953) and Berlin (after 1953).⁴³

Several artists of Hungarian descent (Eugen [Jenő] Ormándy, Edward Kilényi Jr., Ernő Dohnányi, Georges Sebastian [György Sebestyén], László Halász) but also international stars (Jorge Bolet, George Enescu, Yehudi Menuhin and Jacques Thibaud) were on the company's roster. The cover texts were written by prominent musicologists of the time such as Dr Sigmund Spaeth, John W. Freeman and Irving Kolodin.⁴⁴ Alex Steinweiss, a former designer at Columbia Records, was responsible for the cover design of Remington Records.⁴⁵ Remington's first recording director was a Dohnányi student, Edward Kilényi Jr. (1910–2000), who remained until 1953, when he took a teaching position at the Florida School of Music.⁴⁶ He was succeeded at the company by conductor László Halász (1905–2001).⁴⁷ In addition to Schulhof's work, it was certainly Kilényi who was responsible for Dohnányi's first American recordings, when the composer-pianist traveled to New York in the fall of 1950 to record some solo pieces and duos with his former colleague, violinist Albert Spalding.⁴⁸

The other smaller American company, Everest, had no Hungarian ties, but invented a technical innovation in sound recording technology that helped record the elderly pianist's interpretations. Everest Records was founded in May 1958 by Bert Whyte (1920–1994) and Harry David Belock (1908–1999) with the aim of using the opportunities of the new stereo technology to make recordings of classical music of the highest possible quality.⁴⁹ As a technical experiment, they were among the first to use 35 mm magnetic tape for multichannel stereo recordings.⁵⁰ They marketed their classical music issues in both mono (LPBR 6000 series) and stereo (SDBR 3000 series) versions. Their repertoire was not based on new recordings of popular, well-known works, but focused on works that did not yet exist in stereo recordings, and they sought to attract well-known performers like Leopold Stokowski and Dmitri Mitropoulos.⁵¹

As is widely known, Dohnányi's involvement with the Everest label proved to be literally fatal. Originally, two recording sessions were scheduled for January and Spring 1960, but at the request of the company the two sessions were finally merged and held in late January and early February 1960 in New York.⁵² Dohnányi caught a cold in the studio during the recording sessions and died shortly afterwards.⁵³ According to Kocsis, “it was, to put it mildly, irresponsible of Everest to release recordings that Dohnányi had worked on while he was – one might say – terminally ill. The Beethoven and Dohnányi recordings, which had never been authorized by the artist, were of course a source of incredible prestige for the newly established company.”⁵⁴ However, Everest was short-lived, with Belock leaving the company in 1960, and it was dissolved in the following year.⁵⁵

Nevertheless, the assertion that major international companies were not at all interested in Ernő Dohnányi is false. Both Columbia and His Master's Voice worked with him in June 1928. Columbia's sound engineers contributed to Dohnányi's first recordings as a conductor; they made the only surviving studio recording of a Mozart piano concerto, and in the days after Dohnányi's third wedding⁵⁶ Dohnányi and his pupil Edward Kilényi’ Jr. made an excellent recording of Suite en Valse (1949) for Columbia. Furthermore, it is a fact that His Master's Voice was the record label that accompanied Dohnányi's career for the longest time: starting in 1928, immediately after the recordings at Columbia, the company made a recording of Dohnányi conducting. In 1929 Dohnányi's interpretation of Schumann was recorded, as well as an original composition and a virtuoso transcription, and in 1931 two further brilliant Dohnányi transcriptions as well as the first recording of Variations on a Nursery Song with the composer were made. The first post-war Dohnányi recordings were also made by His Master's Voice in 1946 – however, these recordings remained unpublished at the time –,⁵⁷ and finally, in August and September 1956, Dohnányi recorded a large number of his own compositions for the label. It is also important to note that of all the record companies HMV's Dohnányi recordings are the best documented.

The interest shown by His Master's Voice in Dohnányi's recordings varied from time to time. In 1928, the company's artistic director, Fred Gaisberg (1873–1951), made an offer to Dohnányi that if they managed to complete the originally planned recordings in due time and if Dohnányi wished to continue the work, they could make some samples of Ruralia Hungarica that would serve as test recordings to the full series to be recorded at a later date.⁵⁸ On the other hand – according to extensive research by Alan Walker – the American release of a significant proportion of the 1956 HMV recordings were held back for some time by David Bicknell, the EMI Manager of International Artists. There were business reasons behind the decision: the two Dohnányi concerto recordings conducted by Sir Adrian Boult were not as successful as expected for the label, and it was feared that the solo piano compositions, which were much less well known than Variations on a Nursery Song, would attract even less interest.⁵⁹ It is therefore understandable that Andrew Schulhof's efforts to persuade the HMV management in the summer of 1957 to make a recording of Dohnányi interpreting works by other composers failed.⁶⁰

Kocsis suggests that “it is possible that His Master's Voice wanted to please Western consumers hungry for more exotic music, so they focused on genuine ʽHungarianʼ content, and Dohnányi as a performer was no longer considered a national enough product – but these are merely speculations.”⁶¹ Although not entirely correct, this hypothesis holds some truth. In 1926 sound recording reached a new level, as the use of electronic technology contributed to the quality of piano recordings, but Ernő Dohnányi was living in Hungary at the time, and the country was not among the first places where technical innovations were implemented. However, members of the next generation of Hungarian pianists, who turned out to be perhaps even more successful than their predecessors, were already becoming increasingly active abroad. The “first” in this respect was probably Lajos [Louis] Kentner, who made several recordings for the Edison Bell in Budapest in 1928; he then worked his way up in the second half of the 1930s to become one of the most acclaimed Liszt performers with his Columbia recordings of previously unrecorded Liszt works.⁶² Miklós Schwalb's first recordings were made in 1929 (Duophone); although he became better known in the LP-era. Lili Kraus appeared on the international record market in 1933 (Odeon, Parlophon), followed by Edward Kilényi Jr. in 1937 (Pathé, later Columbia), Géza Anda in 1942 (English Columbia, Siemens Spezial, later DGG), Gyula [Julian von] Károlyi in 1943 (Polydor, Deutsche Grammophon), György Sándor in 1945 (American Columbia), Andor Földes in 1948 (Vox, Deutsche Grammophon),⁶³ Edith Farnadi in 1951 (Nixa, Westminster), Ági Jámbor in 1952 (Nixa), Béla Siki in 1954 (Parlophone), and by György [Georges] Cziffra (Supraphon and later HMV),⁶⁴ György Szoltsányi [Georges Solchany] (Columbia) and Tamás Vásáry (DGG) in 1958.⁶⁵ Among Hungarian pianists Andor Földes, György Sándor, Sári Bíró (1953, Remington LP) and Ilona Kabos (Bartók Records LPs) were also fairly popular in the US in the 1940s and 1950s. In this context, we can assume that Béla Bartók and Ernő Dohnányi were no longer considered to be new Hungarian pianists who could generate considerable profit.

2 Dohnányi and the technical media

Because of his position he was often consulted about sound recording and radio broadcasting, so his comments and writings provide an insight into what his thoughts might have been. He said about himself that he was especially interested in the acoustics of broadcasting, how the orchestra's different seating arrangements effected sound transmission, and what effect the studio equipment had on broadcasting. As he pointed out in an interview, his ultimate goal was to provide the perfect sound through radio: “I want to experiment, and I will continue doing so. By experimenting, by collecting the experience, we will eventually create a perfect radio concert.”⁷⁰ As Bryan Crimp revealed, Dohnányi's 1956 HMV recordings, except for one day (August 29), were made in experimental stereo, in tandem with standard monaural recording.⁷¹ Dohnányi was thrilled about his first stereo recording experience: “I heard the stereo recording of some of my things three years ago in ’56 when I recorded for Victrola [sic!] in London, and they showed me then. That's, of course, quite wonderful.”⁷² This seems to confirm Belle Schulhof's recollection of Dohnányi's recording sessions in the 1950s, according to which “Dohnányi himself was fascinated by the process of making recordings.”⁷³

However, other sources reveal the ambivalent nature of Dohnányi's attitude towards technology. Contrary to the above quotations, it seems that he was not a fan of technical innovations, preferring more traditional forms of artistic performance. Although Dohnányi's pocket diaries contain several entries confirming that he went to the cinema in Budapest,⁷⁴ when asked in 1943 whether he liked the theater and cinema, he replied the following: “I like theater. I am interested in the movie while I am watching, but afterwards I regret the time wasted. Cinema is too technical, I prefer seeing the actor on the stage rather than on the screen.”⁷⁵ In a 1948 lecture, he blamed the perfection of sound recording for the disappearance of home music sessions.⁷⁶ He was also disappointed that students imitated sound recordings rather than performing the music according to their own interpretation.⁷⁷ And although he received a video camera as a gift in 1957,⁷⁸ allowing him to experience filming for himself, he was similarly negative about television in 1959.⁷⁹

Later, however, he himself experienced the technical improvements in broadcasting and realized that the difference between studio sound and the sound of live music in a concert hall was getting smaller and smaller.⁸³ When he became a regular guest on Hungarian Radio, and was soon appointed head of the music department, he got accustomed to playing music in the studio.⁸⁴ By 1942 he seemed to consider it equal to playing music at home: “sitting alone at the piano in the studio, one can play music as freely as if one were at home, alone with the instrument.”⁸⁵

A small hint in Belle Schulhof's memoirs reveals that Dohnányi prepared for concerts just like he did before making a recording: “Before a performance or a recording session, he would say, ‘I need to practice for fifteen minutes.’ This was virtually the equivalent of what other pianists called a warm-up. ‘Of course, I can't learn or improve with that much practise – he would add – but it keeps me in shape, it satisfies me, and I hope the audience as well.’”⁸⁶ Nevertheless, we can suspect that while Dohnányi, as a concert pianist, was not bothered by any mistakes, and was rather inspired by the “unique and unrepeatable” nature of the occasion, this was no longer the case when he was in the studio, where the recordings could be rewound and replayed. The nature of interpretation, born in a given moment and gone in the next, did not find its way to the recordings that were made for posterity, so Dohnányi had to look for other tools of expression.

Veronika Kusz's suggestion is therefore justified: perhaps Dohnányi himself believed that the concert podium was a more natural medium for his performance than the studio.⁹⁵ This is also supported by Dohnányi's remark, based on a negative experience with sound recordings: “… to regard a record like to Bible, you know, it's certainly a mistake.”⁹⁶

Even so, the fact remains that the long play (LP) records and tape recording technique made it possible for Dohnányi to record even longer, continuous works on disc, something that was not available to Béla Bartók. Moreover, as Bálint Vázsonyi pointed out, after 1945 gramophone records became Dohnányi's only medium for reaching a wider audience.⁹⁷

3 Concert and home recording

It is also fortunate that Dohnányi's surviving recordings provide an insight into one of the most important issues regarding his performing art: the relationship between studio recording, broadcast and concert recording. Dohnányi's live recordings include both radio and concert recordings. Two groups of sources are worth mentioning separately.

Only a few recordings of Dohnányi's radio broadcasts before 1945 have survived. The Hungarian recordings are found mostly in the so-called “Babits-Makai Collection,” which is known internationally for the private recordings made from Béla Bartók's radio broadcasts.⁹⁸ István Makai, a Hungarian sound engineer and radio expert, made recordings for private purposes in his own studio from 1936.⁹⁹ He not only undertook to make new recordings but also made transfers from cylinders to discs, for example for Béla Bartók himself.¹⁰⁰ Furthermore, he experimented with recordings from radio broadcasts, using a record-cutting equipment he had developed himself.¹⁰¹ He was certainly the first sound engineer to use scrapped hospital X-ray foils as a sound carrier, due to a shortage of lacquer discs during World War II.¹⁰² Sophie Török (1895–1955, the pen-name of the wife of the Hungarian poet Mihály Babits [1883–1941], originally Ilona Tanner), who was an enthusiast of the technical media, commissioned several sound engineers, among others István Makai as well, to make sound recordings from radio broadcasts. She was documented to have been in contact with Makai only from 1938 onwards, and consequently it is not at all obvious, that all the recordings that survived in the Babits legacy were made by Makai.¹⁰³ István Gál was the first to draw attention to the archival recordings preserved in the legacy of Mihály Babits in the Manuscripts Collection of the National Széchényi Library (NSzL), i.e. the recordings commissioned by Sophie Török and made by various sound engineers. In his first list of recordings, which was compiled without listening to the recordings, using only their inscriptions, there were some items that can linked to Dohnányi's performing activities.¹⁰⁴ However, in the late 1970s, when the Centenary Edition of Bartók's Records was being prepared, research focused only on the recordings on which Bartók himself was performing, so only three of Dohnányi's recordings could be reissued after a sound restoration. The ones that were not transferred at the time of the Bartók Edition were attempted to be digitized at Hungarian Radio in the late 1990s, so some recordings are now available on CD in the Manuscripts Collection of the NSzL.¹⁰⁵ The boxes holding the X-ray discs of the legacy also contain a 1998 report written by Tibor Molnár, sound restorer at Hungarian Radio, who noted that unfortunately a significant part of the X-ray discs were no longer playable.

We know of another concert recording, made under special circumstances. Between 1942 and 1944 there was a student studio in the Cistercian High School of Pécs, in the south of Hungary. Student staff of this studio not only made radio broadcasts locally at the school but also on-the-spot recordings of important events in the city.¹⁰⁶ In May 1943, Dohnányi and the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra gave a concert in Pécs; the program included Jenő Takács's Tarantella for piano and orchestra (1937). The solo part was played by the composer, who was then working in Pécs. Emil Hargittay, a student of the Cistercian High School, recorded the remarkable performance using the on-the-spot equipment of Hungarian Radio.¹⁰⁷

In terms of quantity, what stands out from the entire post-1945 discography of Ernő Dohnányi is the very large number of concert and private home recordings made during the years he lived in the US.¹⁰⁸ James A. Grymes was the first to publish a brief summary of these recordings in his 1998 article, which reveals that the original recordings were made on magnetic tape.¹⁰⁹ They were later transferred to Digital Audio Tape (DAT), Compact Casettes (MC) and CDs.¹¹⁰ A complete list of the American recordings was first published by Deborah Kiszely-Papp,¹¹¹ and since the recordings themselves are regarded as invaluable sources for research in the history of interpretation, they have been used by several researchers for interpretation analyses.¹¹²

Although Zathureczky does not mention the fact in his letter, it seems from the recordings themselves that they were made in the presence of a small, presumably invited, audience, in an informal mood. One other pleasant event has been preserved, the only recording of Dohnányi playing the harpsichord: he played Bach's Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue, and a lively conversation can be heard before both movements.

Some live recordings have been released on LPs and CDs. Initially Hungaroton released a selection on its Dohnányi album in 1979,¹¹⁷ David Canfield issued two LPs from the home recordings of Zathureczky and Dohnányi on his label “Rarissima,”¹¹⁸ and two CDs were released in the 2010s,¹¹⁹ but apart from these many of the recordings are not yet available to the public. Despite the poor technical sound quality of these live recordings, they provide a reliable document of Dohnányi's piano-playing and conducting and give us hope that there may be more such recordings of the performances of one of the twentieth century's most brilliant musicians.

4 The recorded and surviving repertoire

In reviewing the repertoire described in the discography, it is important to distinguish studio recordings from concert and/or private recordings. Studio recordings are made with the intention of long-term preservation – either by the performer or by the player piano or record company. On the contrary, this may not be true in the case of the live recordings, since the artist may not even be aware of being recorded. Thus, the repertoire of concert recordings tells more about Ernő Dohnányi the concert pianist than about Dohnányi the disc performer. Furthermore, in the case of concert recordings, the repertoire may have been shaped not only by the performer's actual intentions but also by possible shortcomings of the recording procedure: for example, not all the pieces performed at a certain concert or radio broadcast have survived.

The gramophone discs are more evenly balanced: the first solo piano Dohnányi disc features Beethoven's Für Elise on one side and Dohnányi's own Marsch op. 17 no. 1 on the reverse. Between 1929 and 1950, the conductor Dohnányi interprets other composer's works, while Dohnányi the pianist performed his own compositions on all recordings, except for a Schumann-cycle. The record companies seem to have preferred Ernő Dohnányi the composer who interpreted his own works as a pianist.

The American LP-era brought significant progress not only technically, but also in terms of Dohnányi's recording repertoire: it enabled the complete recording and release of longer works on a single disc. Previously, except for the Mozart Piano Concerto, which was divided into eight discs, and the Variations on a Nursery Song, which took up five discs, Dohnányi had recorded short works or cycles of short movements. In this respect, he might even have felt more comfortable when making piano roll recordings than during gramophone recordings, since he was able to play a series of longer works, for example, Liszt's Fantasie und Fuge über das Thema B–A–C–H or the Hungarian Rhapsody no. 13 on piano roll. As a contrast, Dohnányi began the LP-era with the three violin sonatas by Brahms and a complete Beethoven sonata.

The organizers of the three post-1950 LP recording sessions saw Dohnányi from different perspectives: the smaller labels – Remington and Everest – thought it important to have both the performer and the composer Dohnányi in their catalogs. On the Remington recordings, apart from the Four Rhapsodies op. 11 and the Sonata for Piano and Violin op. 21 (the latter unpublished at the time, for unknown reasons), he played works by Haydn, Beethoven, Schumann and Brahms. On the Everest recordings, works by Beethoven and Dohnányi were given roughly equal space. The 1956 recording by His Master's Voice, on the other hand, feature only his own works.

Kocsis rightly asks the following question: “Why did none of the major international labels commission a musician of this caliber to record, say, all of Beethoven's piano sonatas … ?”¹²² The answer is perhaps that the largest international record company of the era, His Master's Voice, had already put together their own roster of international artists, and thus considered Dohnányi to be “easier to sell” as an interpreter of his own works. Almost all of Dohnányi's characteristic repertoire had already been recorded by distinguished pianists by the mid-1950s. Four complete series of Beethoven's sonatas by three different pianists were available on the international record market.¹²³ Victor had Wilhelm Backhaus's Brahms albums in its catalogs.¹²⁴ Schumann's more familiar, larger-scale works – Carnaval op. 9, Fantasiestücke op. 12, Symphonic Etudes op. 13, Kreisleriana op. 16, and the Fantasia in C Major op. 17 – were published in the early 1950s by HMV and Victor, in performances by internationally acclaimed pianists such as Alfred Cortot, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Arthur Rubinstein, Edwin Fischer and Wilhelm Backhaus.¹²⁵ Perhaps Schubert's sonatas were the least represented in the recorded repertoire, but this was obviously due to their lack of popularity. Even so, in the early 1950s, HMV included in its catalog Arthur Schnabel's recordings of Schubert's last piano sonatas,¹²⁶ and by the mid-1950s smaller record companies had recognized the “niche market” and were making recordings of the unrecorded Schubert sonatas, performed by both well-known and lesser-known pianists.¹²⁷

On the basis of that, it can be stated that Ernő Dohnányi's studio recording repertoire reflects his performing repertoire only to a limited extent.¹²⁸ He performed works by other composers much more frequently in his concerts than in the recording studio; furthermore, most of his recordings containing works by other composers are preserved on piano rolls. However, it is also a fact that the composers who played a central role in Dohnányi's concert repertoire – Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Liszt – have all been recorded on piano rolls or discs by Dohnányi. This repertoire includes five recordings of four complete sonatas by Beethoven – op. 31 no. 2, op. 78, op. 109 and two recordings of op. 110, as well as the 32 variations, plus Für Elise and the Andante favori, also recorded twice. His commercial Schubert recordings include a Moment musical and a sonata movement. It is certainly unusual for the period that Dohnányi begins his recorded oeuvre with Schubert's Piano Sonata in A Minor (D. 845). He performed this work frequently in his concerts from 1899 onwards.¹²⁹ At first glance, it seems odd that only the second and third movements of the sonata were recorded in his performance, obviously due to the limited size of the piano roll, although this illustrates what Bálint Vázsonyi and Ilona Kovács wrote, that Dohnányi's Schubert repertoire was much richer than that of his pianist contemporaries. Vázsonyi even goes so far as to say that “he [Dohnányi] was the one who gained acceptance for Schubert's sonatas all over the world.”¹³⁰

His studio recordings also include Schumann, Brahms and Liszt; he even recorded the Kinderszenen twice.¹³¹ Similarly, he made two recordings of Haydn's Variations in F Minor (once on piano roll and once on disc), and this repertoire is complemented by two short pieces by Chopin on piano rolls.

Given all this, the recorded material that American universities have saved for posterity is truly invaluable. Looking only at Beethoven's works, the American recordings include eight complete sonatas: the “Pathétique,” op. 13, op. 27 no. 2, all three sonatas of op. 31, and the last three (op. 109, 110 and 111), two separate sonata movements, the Diabelli Variations op. 120, the 32 Variations (WoO. 80), the Variations op. 76, the Polonaise in C Major op. 89 and two further recordings of the Andante favori. It is important to note at this point that the majority of American concert recordings are evidently from the repertoire of the elder Dohnányi. Thus, apart from a considerable amount of chamber music, only two Schubert impromptus and the Piano Sonata in G Major (op. 78), a few piano works of Schumann and Liszt (also recorded in studio) and three Brahms piano pieces are available in Dohnányi's concert interpretation.

On the other hand, the composer's interpretation of his own works is well documented in the form of studio recordings. From the early pieces (Four Piano Pieces, op. 2) to the late works (Three Piano Pieces, op. 44), there are numerous Dohnányi pieces performed by the composer, including complete cycles of greater length, such as the Four Rhapsodies op. 11, Winterreigen op. 13, Three Piano Pieces op. 23, Suite in Olden Style op. 24, Variations on a Hungarian Folksong op. 29, and Six Piano Pieces op. 41 (recorded twice). Also, if we add up the various recordings of Ruralia Hungarica (op. 32a), for disc and piano roll, we arrive at the complete cycle. These are complemented by two studio recordings of Variations on a Nursery Song (op. 25) from 1931 to 1956, and the complete recordings of the Piano Concerto no. 2 (op. 42), Suite en Valse (op. 39a), and Sonata for Piano and Violin (op. 21). The recordings of Dohnányi playing the same composition at different times offer countless opportunities for comparative performance analysis, and if this repertoire is enriched with the American concert recordings, a vast corpus is available for research (see Table 1) – assuming that the recordings are accessible.¹³²

It is especially interesting to note that Dohnányi made piano rolls only from the first two and the last of the Four Rhapsodies, op. 11, in the 1920s. For the moment, we have no information as to why the third Rhapsody (in C) was not recorded or why it may be missing. It is possible that Dohnányi also made a recording of the Rhapsody in C, but for some technical reason it could not be published, or that Dohnányi did not authorize its publication. Peter Phillips' research shows that Ampico only published the second Rhapsody (in F♯ Minor) in 1921, and that the first and last Rhapsodies were withheld and only came to the attention of the public on an LP issue much later, in the 1970s.¹³³ However, the fact that Ampico also released the Rhapsody in C in 1923, performed by Lester Donahue,¹³⁴ suggests that they wanted to have the complete set in their repertoire, but did not have a publishable recording of Dohnányi performing the work.

One of the most widely reissued studio recordings of Ernő Dohnányi performing works of other composers is the Columbia release of Mozart's Piano Concerto in G Major (K. 453). This is a particularly valuable recording because it is the first complete recording of the piece and the earliest recording of a Piano Concerto performed by Hungarian musicians. Apart from this, however, Dohnányi only recorded his own piano concertos. The American concert recordings are also of considerable value in this respect, since they include – apart from the Dohnányi concertos already mentioned – a total of three recordings: two Mozart piano concertos and one Beethoven piano concerto.

Similarly, the series of American recordings enriches the repertoire of Dohnányi's chamber music recordings. While the four sonatas with Spalding and the piano four-hands with Kilényi have been preserved on disc, there are also live recordings of four four-hand concert programs by Kilényi and Dohnányi and three sonata recitals by Spalding and Dohnányi. These are accompanied by the Edinburgh sonata recital with Alfred Campoli and a series of larger chamber music productions (piano trios and quintets). And although, as mentioned above, the repertoire of American live recordings does not reflect any conscious intention to preserve a given repertoire, the private recordings with Zathureczky are a special exception in this respect. In fact, the three Brahms sonatas recorded with Spalding are noticeably absent from their program. Apart from this one omission, the repertoire played with Zathureczky, however, contains the pillars of Dohnányi's chamber music repertoire: four Mozart sonatas, four Beethoven sonatas, and sonatas by Schumann, Franck and Dohnányi. They might have chosen these particular pieces in order to record the repertoire so dear to Dohnányi at least at home, as tape recorded made it possible to record longer compositions.

The studio recordings of Dohnányi as a conductor were made exclusively during his middle, Budapest period (1915–1944). Before 1926, the acoustic recording technique was still rudimentary in its ability to transmit orchestral sound, but the possibility of electric recording brought a significant improvement in quality. This coincides with the fact that Dohnányi's conducting activities increased from the mid-twenties onwards, as he became the president and chief conductor of the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra in 1919.¹³⁵ As Kovács has noted, as far as his performing activities in Hungary are concerned, Dohnányi appeared more often as a conductor than as a pianist after 1934.¹³⁶ The evolution of the technology of sound recording and the actual state of sound recording technology in Hungary are well reflected by the fact that Dohnányi first conducted in a recording studio in London between 1928 and 1931, while his first Budapest recording of conducting an orchestra took place after 1937. By that time, it became possible to make gramophone recordings with a full symphony orchestra at the studio of Hungarian Radio in Sándor Street (now: Bródy Sándor Street).¹³⁷ After 1945, however, international record companies no longer asked Dohnányi to appear as a conductor, employing him exclusively as a pianist.

The spectrum of Dohnányi's recording repertoire as a conductor is very narrow: apart from two short compositions of his own, he tended to conduct only “popular” pieces during his studio sessions. The orchestral recordings he made abroad – due to the programming policy of the major international labels – mostly consist of Hungarian music: Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody no. 1 for orchestra (the orchestral version of the Hungarian Rhapsody no. 14 for piano), Berlioz's Rákóczi March (that is, the Marche Hongroise from the first part of La damnation de Faust, op. 24, in two recordings), the Hungarian National Anthem (Himnusz) by Ferenc Erkel, Szózat by Béni Egressy, the orchestral version of Ernő Dohnányi's Hiszekegy [Hungarian Creed], and the finale of Ruralia Hungarica. Unusually, HMV made two recordings of Szózat and Dohnányi's Hiszekegy on June 18, 1928. Matrix nr. CR 2088 contains both of them on one side of a 12″ (30 cm) diameter disc, while BR 2090 and BR 2091 contain the same works separately on two sides of a 10″ (25 cm) diameter disc.

The program of the orchestral recordings made in Budapest was most likely linked to Ernő Dohnányi's official duties at Hungarian Radio: not only could they be of interest to people buying records, but Hungarian Radio also made use of the recording of the Hungarian National Anthem (Himnusz) in two different versions, with and without choir, on many occasions. The funeral march from Ferenc Erkel's Hunyadi László and Mihály Mosonyi's Gyászhangok Széchenyi István halálára [Mourning sounds for the death of István Széchenyi] were often played at funeral ceremonies of prestigious people during the period.¹³⁸ The recordings of these two orchestral pieces were first broadcast on October 6, 1942 on Hungarian Radio, as part of a memorial service dedicated to The 13 Martyrs of Arad. It may be surprising to see the name of Mihály Mosonyi in Dohnányi's conducting repertoire, as well as in his discography. Also interesting is the fact that, apart from the composer's folk-inspired art songs that became repertoire pieces of Hungarian Gypsy bands, this is the first known recording of Mosonyi's music.¹³⁹ Mihály Mosonyi was important to Dohnányi: perhaps he, as a composer who was born in Pozsony (Bratislava), felt sympathetically towards the former composer who studied in the same city. Moreover, emphasizing the Hungarian culture of Pozsony became a form of political statement after the Trianon Treaty. As Bálint Vázsonyi points out, Dohnányi, in his first year as music director of Hungarian Radio, revised and performed Mosonyi's Hungarian Cantata (in fact, the first Hungarian cantata), A tisztulás ünnepe az Ungnál [The feast of purification at the river Ung].¹⁴⁰

Although these recordings are also significant, the question raised by Kocsis is perhaps even more valid than the one quoted earlier: “Why is it that in comparison to his conducting career the number of discs on which he conducts is so small?”¹⁴¹ From this point of view, the corpus of concert recordings is indeed a much richer field for an analysis of interpretation. Most of these recordings contain Dohnányi's own compositions – the Suite in F♯ Minor op. 19, Variations on a Nursery Song op. 25, Ruralia Hungarica op. 32b, Symphonic Minutes op. 36, Violin Concerto no. 2 op. 43, Stabat Mater op. 46, American Rhapsody op. 47 – but also orchestral works, concertos and oratorios by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms and Bruckner, conducted by Dohnányi.

5 Known and less known hiatuses

In the case of Ernő Dohnányi's recordings, we need to account for several hiatuses. The number of recordings which we know existed but which were destroyed, or which are in hiding, or which survived but can, perhaps, no longer be played, is relatively high.

This instance is also mentioned by Bálint Vázsonyi and János Mácsai; Mácsai adds, however, that the rolls are missing from the Ampico catalogs, which implies that they were not released.¹⁴³

Bryan Crimp quotes a correspondence between the Austrian branch and the London Head Office of His Master's Voice from 1928. According to that, Dohnányi was to be invited to record “a potpourri of Hungarian folk songs, even if we have to pay as high as £100.”¹⁴⁴ This plan was never realized, but the request can be considered as a forerunner of the 1929 solo piano HMV recordings by Dohnányi.

Obviously, countless radio recordings were made with Ernő Dohnányi as both pianist and conductor.¹⁴⁵ Although it would be possible to collect the details of the radio concerts based on the published radio programs, the contemporary radio supplements in newspapers mostly provided incomplete data; therefore, we would not necessarily obtain meaningful information on the recordings.¹⁴⁶ Furthermore, it is not known which studio concerts of Dohnányi were preserved at Hungarian Radio on lacquer discs. It is known that Dohnányi recorded all the piano concertos by Mozart with his own cadenzas at Hungarian Radio in 1941 and 1942.¹⁴⁷ These recordings, according to our present knowledge, were destroyed during World War II.¹⁴⁸ However, the 1066^th episode of the Hungarian World News (July 1944) preserved a complete sound recording of Szózat by Béni Egressy in a newly orchestrated version by Dohnányi.¹⁴⁹ The recording was made for the purpose of being aired by Hungarian Radio.

A particularly painful hiatus in Dohnányi's oeuvre is the mystery of the Hungarophon disc series, revealed by Enikő Veöreös.¹⁵⁰ On June 19, 1941, Péter Pál Kelen, head of Durium Records, signed a recording contract with Ernő Dohnányi for 50 discs, the intention of which was to represent Dohnányi as a pianist, conductor and composer.¹⁵¹ The project's artistic director was the musicologist Viktor Papp, a personal as well as professional friend of Dohnányi and a member of the Music Board of the Radio, while executive director Ottó Conrad, on behalf of the Hungarian Commercial Bank of Pest, supported the production of the record series.¹⁵² From a letter written by Péter Pál Kelen to Ottó Conrad in January 1942 we learn that the recording of Beethoven's “Pathétique” Sonata, made presumably in the autumn of 1941, turned out “quite brilliant,” and that they were preparing to record the “Moonlight” Sonata and “other orchestral works.”¹⁵³ Two entries from November 1941 in Dohnányi's calendar probably refer to these recordings.¹⁵⁴ Péter Pál Kelen created a separate label (Hungarophon) for this record series, but – for reasons not yet known – the series did not materialize; in fact, even the completed recordings remained unpublished. We have no further information on the Hungarophon record label either.¹⁵⁵

The Hungarophon series was not the only one that never materialized. When Andrew Schulhof was informed that HMV would record Dohnányi's piano-playing in 1956 in experimental stereo, he also suggested that the firm add further pieces to the repertoire: Mozart's Piano Concertos K. 271 and K. 503, Mozart's Fantasia K. 397 and Piano Sonata K. 331, Beethoven's Sonata op. 109, the Diabelli Variations and the 32 Variations.¹⁵⁶

The archive recordings of the Babits legacy preserved in the Manuscript Collection of the National Széchényi Library must be mentioned on their own. On the basis of a comparison of the list published by István Gál in 1969 with both the later registers and the currently available records, it can be stated that the discs of the following recordings existed at the end of the late 1960s, at least, or that they are still accessible but are not or only partially playable:¹⁵⁷

1. ‒Wolfgang Amadé Mozart: Piano Concerto in E♭ [Köchel no. unspecified]. At least 2 sides. Performed by Ernő Dohnányi with an unknown orchestra. Without date. Fond III/2331/4. János Sebestyén also mentioned the existence of this recording in an interview in 1995.¹⁵⁸
2. ‒Robert Schumann: Violin Sonata in D Minor. 2 sides. Performed by Emil Telmányi and Ernő Dohnányi. Without date. Fond III/2331/4. Transferred to CD.
3. ‒Béla Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin Suite. 4 sides numbered as 3 to 6. Inscription on the discs: “vez. Dohnányi. B[artók]. 60. születésnapján.” [Cond. by Dohnányi, on the 60^th birthday of Bartók]. Performed by the Orchestra of the Royal Hungarian Opera, conducted by Ernő Dohnányi. Royal Hungarian Opera, March 24, 1941. Fond III/2331/12, 3 discs (the first disc is currently missing).
4. ‒Béla Bartók: Rhapsody for Piano and Orchestra, op. 1. 2 sides. Inscription on the discs: “Bartók: Rapszódia zongorára és zenekarra [1]941. március. játsza: Faragó György Bartók 60. születésnapján” [Bartók: Rhapsody for piano and orchestra. March [1]941. Performed by György Faragó on the 60^th birthday of Bartók]. Performed by György Faragó, the Orchestra of the Royal Hungarian Opera, conducted by Ernő Dohnányi. Royal Hungarian Opera, March 24, 1941. Fond III/2331/12.
5. ‒Béla Bartók: Suite no. 1. 8 sides. Inscription on the discs: “Bartók 1. Suite Opera, vez. Dohnányi. [1]940. febr[uár]. 5.” [Bartók 1. Suite, Opera, cond. by Dohnányi, February 1940]. The recording is presumably identical with the recording transferred to CD at the end of the 1990s: Béla Bartók: Suite no. 1, excerpts from movements 1, 2 and 5, Orchestra of the Royal Hungarian Opera, conducted by Ernő Dohnányi. The date on the CD (Budapest I, December 14, 1940) cannot be identified in the Concert Database of the Archives of 20^th–21^st-Century Hungarian Music, or in the published radio programs.
6. ‒Béla Bartók: Two Pictures, op. 10. Excerpts. 3 sides. Inscription on the discs: “Bartók: Két kép. [1]940. január 12. Filharmoniai Társ[aság]. vez. Dohnányi[.] Virágzás.” [Bartók: Two Pictures. January 12, [1]940., Philharmonic Society, cond. by Dohnányi. In Full Flower]. Performed by the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Ernő Dohnányi. Royal Hungarian Opera, January 12, 1940. Fond III/2331/12.

This list of hiatuses is considerable. There is hope, however. As audio engineer István Makai's X-ray discs, which were handed over to János Sebestyén by his widow after his death, were also added to the Music Collection of the National Széchényi Library in 2012, and based on the first comparisons of the two collections, it became clear that István Makai kept copies of several records made for Mrs. Babits in his own collection. The exploration and comparison of the two collections are still in progress, and the recordings on the discs are not yet accessible; as a result, it is not always viable to compare the different lists, the markings, and the extant media. The hand-scratched inscriptions are the only basis on which we can attempt to identify the contents of the discs. Nevertheless, we can hope that at least some recordings, damaged and unheard up to now, will become available sometime in the future.

6 Difficulties of dating recordings and problems related to discography

Given that in the following discography the recordings are listed in chronological order, it is essential to determine the date of each recording and each session as accurately as possible. There are cases in which these pieces of information are detectable with accuracy in respect of date, and already validated in the literature;¹⁵⁹ however, there are cases in which details are unknown or only partially accessible.

The piano rolls – mostly due to János Mácsai's rollography – can be dated with reasonable accuracy.¹⁶⁰ Based on research regarding the archival records of Hupfeld, in Leipzig, however, we need to review the dating of Dohnányi's piano rolls by the company. Dohnányi signed the contract with Hupfeld on April 27, 1906, according to which he undertook to play ten music pieces for a fee of 2,000 German marks.¹⁶¹ From the documents available to the research, it is not clear why, but Dohnányi, in the end, played eleven works onto Hupfeld's piano rolls. Six of those rolls were already published in 1906, while the entirety of the recordings was in circulation by 1912 at the latest.¹⁶²

The dating of the Ampico recordings seems to be the most problematic among the piano rolls. Several do appear in an Ampico Catalog from 1923,¹⁶³ but the Ampico rolls of Dohnányi also include two movements of Ruralia Hungarica which were composed in 1923–1924. Taking this into consideration, János Mácsai rather estimates the date of the recordings to be around 1926. Peter Phillips, however, claims that the recording of the Rhapsody in F♯ Minor was already available in 1921.¹⁶⁴ As we know that Dohnányi toured America almost yearly in the first half of the 1920s,¹⁶⁵ it seems likely that the Ampico recordings were made in a number of different sessions, but the current information does not yet allow us to be more precise in our assessment.

The case of the gramophone recordings is similarly varied: while details of the recordings by His Master's Voice and Columbia are relatively well-processed, difficulties can arise in the case of record companies that are of a smaller scale with a less explored history.

Frank Andrews and Bill Dean-Myatt, in their volume on Edison Bell, dated Dohnányi's record released by the company to 1934 based on the matrix numbers EB 1188–1189.¹⁶⁶ Notwithstanding that, in 1934 Dohnányi certainly did not travel to London as he, due to his thrombosis, barely gave concerts, even in Hungary.¹⁶⁷ Consequently, the disc marked with the matrix numbers EB 1188–1189 is not the original release, but its later reissue published, presumably, in 1934.¹⁶⁸

However, this is not the only uncertainty regarding Dohnányi's first solo piano gramophone record. The disc in question is known in the Hungarian Eternola Edison Bell Catalog – in a quite unusual manner – by two different sets of catalog and matrix numbers (H 1055, matr. H 372–373, and H 1156, matr. H 455–456). The lower matrix numbers are from a dubbing made by the British Institute for Recorded Sound in April 1961,¹⁶⁹ while the higher ones are legible on an original gramophone record that survived. Both sets of sticker numbers fit into the recordings of the Eternola series between 1928 and 1930. Two explanations can be given for the two issues of the same repertoire at the same company with different number sets, neither of which seems rational. It is possible that the same two recordings were reissued at a later date with a new catalog number, although labels tend to keep the original matrix numbers in such cases. The other possibility is that the recordings on the two discs are not identical as Dohnányi, due to a technical or a musical error, repeated the takes. If so, it is highly unusual, nevertheless, that both recordings were released.¹⁷⁰

The lower matrix numbers mark recordings that were made on October 29, 1928.¹⁷¹ From the notes of audio engineer Paul Voigt it is evident that a few technical problems did indeed occur during the recordings. Voigt's note for matrix number H 372 (Beethoven's Für Elise) indicates that some sort of cable noise filtered through the test recording, which required the microphone to be replaced, but the recording ended up too loud and resulted in defects on the surface of the disc.¹⁷² Voigt identified the same problems for the next recording (Dohnányi's Marsch).¹⁷³ We should add, however, that based on the copy accessible today the sound quality of the H 372 and H 373 Dohnányi recordings is hardly bad. Despite Voigt's opinion, the recordings were still pressed in London and released by Edison Bell. We have no reason to assume that the figures registered on the catalog entry of the dubbing by the staff of the BIRS were invalid; consequently, we can also consider their catalog number (H 1055) to be extant.

Nevertheless, the detailed comparison of the two recording pairs deepens the mystery that surrounds them. Based on a computational analysis, we can state that the two recordings of Für Elise marked by different matrix numbers (H 372 and H 455) appear to be identical, while the two recordings of Dohnányi's March op. 17, no. 1 are not: in the lower-numbered one (H 373), we can hear two incorrect beats (on the sixth eighth note of measure 17, at 0:37 and on the fourth eighth note of measure 44, at 1:26),¹⁷⁴ which are no longer noticeable in the higher-numbered one (H 456).¹⁷⁵ Given these, it seems probable that the record company re-recorded the two piano pieces in the next recording sessions in Budapest – in either 1929 or, perhaps, 1930 –, but at any rate Dohnányi's Marsch for certain. However, the second recording pair was likely not pressed in London but in Zagreb, at the Edison-Bell-Penkala factory, which was connected to Edison Bell International Ltd.; and the staff of Edison Bell in London was perhaps not aware that new recordings of the two piano pieces existed. Thus, it is explicable that, following the merger of Decca and Edison Bell in 1932, when reissuing the recordings in 1934 (still maintaining the Edison Bell label) and hoping to profit from Dohnányi's fame, they opted for the first two matrices, used in London, with altered matrix numbers (EB 1188 and EB 1189).

Hence, it seems that even if the two recordings of Für Elise are identical, Dohnányi made two different recordings of the Marsch. At the same time, it is quite bewildering that, apart from the two tiny, incorrect beats, the two recordings appear to be identical; the timings are, empirically speaking, the same. Provided that our research and sources are not mistaken, and based on the striking extent of the interpretive, agogic and temporal correspondences between the two recordings, we need to assert that Dohnányi, in the autumn of 1928 and at a later point, played his own piece, and even the Beethoven piece, with the very same timings. Yet, that would be in stark contrast with our image of Ernő Dohnányi's disposition as a spontaneous pianist, even if Kocsis characterized that spontaneity as follows: “a romantic baseline does not mean a lack of performative schemes, templates, and models. If we take the two recordings of the Pastorale – recorded a quarter-of-a-century apart – under scrutiny, we can pinpoint the same, or quasi-identical, agogics and rubatos in them.”¹⁷⁶ By all accounts, it is inferred that Dohnányi's Edison Bell recordings can function as a basis for further research.

The majority of the Patria records are only known, if at all, as modern reissues. In their cases, the lack of a matrix number hinders the dating process, even renders it impossible. The series of catalog numbers used on certain Hungarian Durium-Patria records tempts the researcher to equate the first item of the catalog number – which, according to our present data, rises to 39 on the early discs, then, after a significant gap, from 43 to 48 – with the year of release. This system seems somewhat plausible, although it cannot be substantiated by documents, and it proves to be flawed precisely in the case of the Dohnányi records, cataloged as DMB 43.106 and 43.107, as we know that Dohnányi's Erkel and Mosonyi recordings were already broadcast by Hungarian Radio as “Celebrity Records” on October 6, 1942, which means that they must have been available on disc in 1942.¹⁷⁷ Given that Mosonyi's piece was still being performed live at the Radio on November 3, 1941,¹⁷⁸ it can be assumed that Dohnányi's recordings were made in 1942.

In the case of the post-1938 recordings, there is an important group of sources available for research: Dohnányi's pocket calendars from 1938 onwards.¹⁷⁹ They contain numerous, extremely valuable pieces of information; due to the nature of the medium, however, there are instances when it is rather difficult to decode entries that are, at times, abbreviated to a few letters. Dohnányi marked the radio activities – rehearsals, live broadcasts, and other tasks – by a sole “R” in his calendar; only in a few cases did he add a start time, a contributor, or a composer next to it. It follows that any of the radio engagements could refer to one of the few Patria recordings in question. Regarding the pocket calendars, it is also essential to note that “Rec.” can be an abbreviation for both recital and recording; Dohnányi already used the word “recital” in the 1920s, and also later in his pocket calendars from Budapest and Tallahassee for his solo concerts.¹⁸⁰ Similarly, the abbreviation “felv.” can also refer to both a recording (“felvétel”) and an entrance exam (“felvételi”) at the Academy of Music.¹⁸¹ Dohnányi, during his recordings in 1956 in London, wrote the abbreviated form of the name of the record company – or, perhaps, that of the medium? – in his calendar: gr[amophone] and gram[ophone].

Unfortunately, not all of the pocket calendars survived. The missing ones are precisely from 1950 to 1960, which could reveal Dohnányi's daily schedule during the time of the Remington and Everest recordings. These years, however, overlap with Ilona von Dohnányi's diaries, which could reveal the details of a few recordings.

We also need to be aware that the entries of the pocket calendars that otherwise seem unambiguous do not provide specific information in every case. The exact date of the performance of Schumann's Violin Sonata in D Minor, and that of the radio broadcast preserved on the X-ray disc, are unknown. Although the entry on December 9, 1939 reads, “1/2 4 Viasz R[ádió] Telm[ányi],” [that is, 3.30pm Wax R[adio] Telm[ányi]], it is by no means certain that the information refers to the surviving recording. On the one hand, Dohnányi and Telmányi regularly played together on the Radio, the occasions of which were recorded on wax discs several times.¹⁸² On the other hand, in the radio programs, there is no broadcast around December 9, 1939, during which Dohnányi and Telmányi played the Schumann sonata.

The information that brought me closer to dating the recording was that the sound engineer István Makai started using X-ray foils for his recordings around 1939, and that during the radio broadcast on March 9, 1941, the Schumann Sonata in D Minor was indeed performed by Dohnányi and Telmányi. Nevertheless, pairing the X-ray disc and the date remains a hypothesis.

A Discography of Ernő Dohnányi

The following list contains the recordings of Ernő Dohnányi's interpretations, divided into two groups – studio recordings and concert and private recordings – and arranged chronologically by recording session and live event. In the first group, I consider the recordings themselves as the basic unit of the discography, and pair them with commercially released sound carriers. In the second group, on the other hand, I do not describe primarily the sound carriers, but rather provide a list of the pieces recorded during particular private or public events. In this case I locate the primary source of the sound recordings (collections and shelf marks). Furthermore, if some of the recordings were also published commercially, I give their data as well. The list does not contain those editions which are only available for download or stream.

Within the studio recordings, different information is considered as the basic unit of the discography, according to the characteristics of the three types of sound carriers: the unique identification number for piano rolls, the matrix number for 78rpm recordings and the musical pieces played during an LP recording session. The details of the performers are given in the most complete form possible from the sources. After each recording session, the release data of the recordings belonging to that group are given. The release data include the reissues in chronological order, if the date of a publication is known. Where only a part of a session is included in a release, the details are specified in square brackets, with a unique identification number, or the name of the composer, or, if needed, an abbreviation of the title of the work or the opus number. The title of a reissue is also included if relevant. Details of the publication and physical characteristics of the carrier (diameter) have been provided where available. Other contents of publications not exclusively consisting of recordings by Ernő Dohnányi have been indicated only where relevant. Notes are given after the data series where appropriate.

In the case of live recordings, I have only listed the works preserved on the recording, so the series of data do not necessarily include the complete programme of a concert. I have given the venue and the performers according to the information in the sources, supplemented where necessary and possible in square brackets. After the series of data for each occasion, I have indicated the location of the sound carrier and, where available, the details of the reissues as described above.

Audovisual recordings are listed as an appendix.

Abbreviations of recording characteristics

78rpm = Gramophone disc (78 rpm)¹⁸³

LP = Long Play (33 1/3 rpm)

EP = Extended Play

CD = Compact Disc

matr. = matrix number (together with, if available, the take number)

p = date of the release

ø = diameter of the disc

Abbreviations of personnel and instruments

cond. = conductor

clar. = clarinet

pno. = piano

vcl. = violoncello

vla. = viola

vn. = violin

Abbreviations of collections:

MZA = Archives for 20^th–21^st-Century Hungarian Music, Institute for Musicology, Research Centre for the Humanities ELKH

NSzL = National Széchényi Library (Budapest)

I Studio recordings

II Concert, broadcast and private recordings

February 16, 1936, London, BBC, broadcast recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Symphonic Minutes, op. 36, mov. 1: Capriccio; mov. 2: Rapsodia; mov. 3: Scherzo; mov. 5: Rondo

BBC Symphony Orchestra; Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Source: British Library, 30B/6974, Leech 246 (Leech collection)

CD: Testament SBT2 1505 (p2014)

February 18, 1936, London, BBC, broadcast recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Rhapsody in C Major, op. 11 no. 3

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Source: British Library, C738/421, Leech 247 (Leech collection)

CD: Testament SBT2 1505 (p2014)

October 26, 1936, Budapest, Royal Hungarian Opera, concert recording

Johann Sebastian BACH, Keyboard Concerto in A Major, BWV 1055, mov. 1 (fragment)

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Concert Rondo in A Major, K. 386 (fragment)

Béla BARTÓK (pno.), Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Lacquer disc.

Source: NSzL Manuscript Collection, Legacy of Mihály Babits, Fond III/2331

LP: Hungaroton LPX 12334–38 (p1981, ø 30 cm)

CD: Hungaroton HCD 12334–37 (p1995)

April 30, 1939, Budapest, concert recording from radio broadcast

Béla BARTÓK, Rhapsody, op. 1, for piano and orchestra (5 fragments)

Béla BARTÓK (pno.), Orchestra of the Royal Hungarian Opera, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

X-ray foil.

Source: NSzL Manuscript Collection, Legacy of Mihály Babits, Fond III/2331

LP: Hungaroton LPX 12334–38 (p1981, ø 30 cm)

CD: Hungaroton HCD 12334–37 (p1995)

CD: BPO BR 0275–76 [150 Years of the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra] (p2003). The source is given as “Hungaroton recordings.”

November 4, 1939, Košice, concert recording from radio broadcast

Franz LISZT–Hans von BÜLOW, Concerto pathétique, LW C18

Béla BARTÓK (pno.), Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

X-ray foil.

Source: NSzL Manuscript Collection, Legacy of Mihály Babits, Fond III/2331

LP: Hungaroton LPX 12334–38 (p1981, ø 30 cm)

LP: [excerpt] Hungaroton PR 783 [Bartók Centenárium Bemutató Lemez = Bartók Centenary Sample Record] (p1981, ø 30 cm)

CD: Hungaroton HCD 12334–37 (p1995)

January 12, 1940, Budapest, Royal Hungarian Opera, concert recording from radio broadcast

Béla BARTÓK, Two Pictures, op. 10 (fragments)

Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

3 sides of x-ray foils.

Source: NSzL Manuscript Collection, Legacy of Mihály Babits, Fond III/2331/12. According to our current data, the discs are not playable.²²⁴

February 5, 1940, Budapest, concert recording from radio broadcast

Béla BARTÓK, Suite no. 1, op. 3 (excerpts)

Orchestra of the Royal Hungarian Opera, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

X-ray foil.

Source: NSzL Manuscript Collection, Legacy of Mihály Babits, Fond III/2331

[unknown date, broadcast presumably on March 9, 1941, Budapest, Hungarian Radio I, 7.45pm]

Robert SCHUMANN, Sonata no. 2 for Violin and Piano in D Minor, op. 121 (excerpts)

Emil TELMÁNYI (vn.), Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

X-ray foil.

Source: NSzL Manuscript Collection, Legacy of Mihály Babits, Fond III/2331/4.

The recording was provided by János Sebestyén to Allan Evans, who published it on the Arbiter Records website.²²⁵

March 24, 1941, Budapest, Royal Hungarian Opera, concert recording from radio broadcast

Béla BARTÓK, The Miracuolous Mandarin Suite (on 3 x-ray foils)

Béla BARTÓK, Rhapsody, op. 1, for Piano and Orchestra (fragments on 1 x-ray foil)

György FARAGÓ (pno.), Orchestra of the Royal Hungarian Opera, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

X-ray foils.

Source: NSzL Manuscript Collection, Legacy of Mihály Babits, Fond III/2331/12. According to our current data, the discs are not playable. The first x-ray foil of The Miraculous Mandarin Suite is missing.²²⁶

May 3, 1943, Pécs, National Theatre, concert recording

Jenő TAKÁCS, Tarantella for piano and orchestra

Jenő TAKÁCS (pno.), Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Decelith disc, ø 30 cm.

The disc is currently missing and is being tracked down.²²⁷ The original disc is currently unavailable. Tamás Nádor (1925–1996), staff member of the Pécs Regional Station of Hungarian Radio from 1953 to 1985 and former leader of the Studio of the Cistercian High School, made transfers of some of the most valuable recordings of the Studio for the sound archives of the Janus Pannonius Museum of Pécs and for the Pécs Regional Station of Hungarian Radio. The latter was probably the source of the copy of the recording which Jenő Takács received on the occasion of his 100th birthday in 2002. Jenő Takács had some copies made for his closest friends, including Éva Radics to whom I offer my thanks for sharing this information with me. At the moment, the archives of the Pécs Regional Station is not available for the research. Attila Kovács, a former colleague of Tamás Nádor informed me that the Regional Station indeed had a tape copy of a recording of Takács’ Tarantella, performed by the composer; however, the box of the tape contained incomplete information, in which Dohnányi’s name was not listed. It is not clear why Tamás Nádor did not put Dohnányi’s name on the box of the tape, possibly because of Dohnányi’s problematic political situation in Hungary at the time. Nevertheless, it is unlikely that there were made more than one recording of Jenő Takács performing his Tarantella in Pécs, so it can be assumed that the tape preserved in the Pécs Regional Station of Hungarian Radio contains the recording of the concert performance conducted by Dohnányi in 1943. A fragment of the recording was copied on cassette by Tamás Nádor in the 1970s as part of an unfinished radio program, with his own introductory speech about the Student Studio of the Cistercian High School of Pécs. This recording is available at the Sound Archive of the Janus Pannonius Museum in Pécs (shelf mark: K-87). CD: [a longer excerpt] appendix to the book: Mátyás IVASIVKA – Attila KOVÁCS: Pécsi Concerto. Fejezetek Pécs zenetörténetéből. Világhírű külföldi, magyar és helyi zeneszerzők kapcsolata Péccsel és Baranyával. [Pécs Concerto. Chapters from the Music History of Pécs. The Relationship of World-famous Foreign, Hungarian and Local Composers with Pécs and Baranya County] (Pécs: Alexandra, 2010).

[unknown date, before 1945], Budapest, concert recording from radio broadcast

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Piano Concerto in E♭ Major, K. number unknown (excerpts)

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno., cond.), unidentified orchestra

X-ray foil.

Source: NSzL Manuscript Collection, Legacy of Mihály Babits, Fond III/2331/4. According to our current data, the discs are not playable.²²⁸

1950, Columbus, Ohio, private recording [?]

Johann Sebastian BACH, Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 903

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Copy on a CD.

Source: MZA, MZA-DE-DA 4.069

According to the inscription on the CD cover, the original owner of the recording is Robert Tifft (Dallas), but he is not familiar with the recording. It cannot be discounted that the recording was copied by János Sebestyén from his own collection for the former Dohnányi Archives of the Institute for Musicology (Hungarian Academy of Sciences), as the rest of the CD contains recordings by János Sebestyén, and thus the reference to Robert Tifft is also from him.²²⁹

March 29, 1951, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, Concert recording

FSU Chamber Music Festival

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Piano Quintet in C Minor, op. 1

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); FSU String Faculty: Karl KUERSTEINER (vn.), Robert SEDORE (vn.), Eugene CRABS (vla.), Owen SELLERS (vcl.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 01). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.001–2

April 26, 1951, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Violin Concerto, op. 43 no. 2

Frances MAGNES (vn.); FSU Symphony; Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 02). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.001–2

January 11, 1952, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

FSU Faculty Recital

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Violin Sonata in A Major, op. 47

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Sonata for Piano and Violin in B♭ Major, K. 454

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Sonata for Piano and Violin, op. 21

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Burletta, op. 44 no. 1 (encore)

Albert SPALDING (vn.); Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 03). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.003

CD: [MOZART, movs. 1–2, Dohnányi op. 21, mov. 2, Dohnányi op. 44 no. 1] Budapest: Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

February 25, 1952, Florida, Concert recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Ruralia Hungarica, op. 32b

State Symphony of Florida; Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 04). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.004–5

March 9, 1952, Athens, OH, Ohio University, Concert recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Ruralia Hungarica, op. 32b

Ohio University Symphony; Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Source: MZA (OSU CD-2). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.045

March 21, 1952, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

FSU Faculty Recital

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Andante favori

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in C Minor, op. 111

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Burletta, op. 44 no. 1

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Nocturne, op. 44 no. 2

Johann STRAUSS Jr.–Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Schatzwalzer

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Scherzino, op. 41 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 05). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.004–5

LP: [BEETHOVEN, op. 111] Tape-Mates RTTMS 123 (p[?], ø [?])

1953, [Tallahassee, FL?], Florida, private recording

Johann Sebastian BACH, Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 903

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (harpsichord [sic])

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA, MZA-DE-DA 4.069

According to the inscription on the CD cover, the original owner of the recording is Robert Tifft (Dallas), but he is not familiar with the recording. It cannot be excluded that the recording was copied by János Sebestyén from his own collection for the former Dohnányi Archives of the Institute for Musicology (Hungarian Academy of Sciences), as the rest of the CD contains recordings by János Sebestyén, and thus the reference to Robert Tifft is also from him.²³⁰

January 16, 1953, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

FSU Faculty Recital

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Violin Sonata in G Major, op. 96 (excerpt from mov. 4)

Johannes BRAHMS, Violin Sonata in D Minor, op. 108

Albert SPALDING (vn.); Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 06). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.006–7

April 28, 1953, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Johannes BRAHMS, Violin Sonata in A Major, op. 100

Franz SCHUBERT, Rondo in B Minor for Violin and Piano, D. 895

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Andante favori

Albert SPALDING (vn.); Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 07). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.006–7. The CD also contains the Preludium and the Gavotte movements of the Partita for Violin Solo BWV 1006 by Johann Sebastian Bach.

May 3, 1953, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Mass in C Major, op. 86

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Choral Fantasy, op. 80

Joy HAZERRIGG (pno.); Betty STEWART (S); Helen FRIEND (A); Hollace ARMONT (T); Bertram ROWE (B); Ohio University Chorus; Ohio University Symphony; Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (OSU CD-3). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.046

November 9, 1953, New York, concert recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Piano Concerto no. 2 in B Minor, op. 42

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); National Orchestra Association; Leon BARZIN (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 08). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.008–9, mistakenly dated to November 1, 1953.

Note on the CD: “átvétel lemezről” [“transferred from disc”]. The New York concert was presumably cut to record and copied for Florida State University or for Dohnányi himself.

January 8, 1954, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

FSU Faculty Recital

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major, K. 448

Robert SCHUMANN, Andante and Variations in B♭ Major, for Two Cellos, Horn and Two Pianos, op. 46

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Edward KILÉNYI Jr. (pno.); Owen SELLERS (vcl.); Harriet HEIMERT (vcl.); Joseph WHITE (horn)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 09). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.008–9

February 21, 1954, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, American Rhapsody, op. 47

conversation of Ernő DOHNÁNYI and other people

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Symphonic Minutes, op. 36

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Stabat Mater, op. 46

Ohio University Orchestra; Ohio University Chorus, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 10). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.010

Note on the CD cover: the recording of Stabat Mater sounds a second low.

February 28, 1954, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Fantasy in C Minor, K. 475

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in E♭ Major, op. 31 no. 3

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Scherzino, op. 41 no. 2

Franz SCHUBERT, Impromptu in F Minor, D. 935, no. 4

Franz SCHUBERT, Impromptu in G♭ Major, D. 899, no. 3

Frédéric CHOPIN, Ballade in G Minor, op. 23

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Pavane with Variations, op. 17 no. 3

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Burletta, op. 44 no. 1

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Nocturne, op. 44 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Gavotte and Musette

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Capriccio in B Minor, op. 2 no. 4

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Ruralia Hungarica, op. 32a no. 6

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 11/1–2). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.011/1–2

June 7, 1954, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

Southeastern Music Workshop

Franz SCHUBERT, Fantasy in F Minor, D. 940

Camille SAINT-SAËNS, Variations on a Theme of Beethoven, op. 35

Johannes BRAHMS, Hungarian Dance no. 1

Johannes BRAHMS, Hungarian Dance no. 11

Johannes BRAHMS, Hungarian Dance no. 4

Johannes BRAHMS, Hungarian Dance no. 3

Johannes BRAHMS, Hungarian Dance no. 6

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Suite en Valse, op. 39a, no. 3: Valse Boiteuse

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Suite en Valse, op. 39a, no. 4: Valse de Fête

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.), Edward KILÉNYI Jr. (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 13). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.013, mistakenly dated to July 7, 1954.

CD: [SCHUBERT] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

June 12, 1954, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Polonaise in C, op. 89

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in D Minor, op. 31 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Pastorale

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Cascades, op. 41 no. 4

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Cloches, op. 41 no. 6

Robert SCHUMANN, Romance in F♯ Major, op. 28 no. 2

Frédéric CHOPIN, Impromptu in A♭ Major, op. 29

Franz LISZT, Hungarian Rhapsody no. 13

Franz LISZT, Consolations no. 3 in D♭ Major, LW A111b, no. 3

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Scherzino, op. 41 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 12). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.012

The beginning of the Beethoven Polonaise is missing from the recording.

May 1, 1955, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Johann Sebastian BACH, Italian Concerto, BWV 971

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in A♭ Major, op. 110

Frédéric CHOPIN, Impromptu in F♯ Major, op. 36

Frédéric CHOPIN, Mazurka in C Major, op. 56 no. 2

Johannes BRAHMS, Intermezzo in E♭ Major, op. 117 no. 1

Johannes BRAHMS, Capriccio in B Minor, op. 76 no. 2

Johannes BRAHMS, Rhapsody in E♭ Major, op. 119 no. 4

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Rhapsody in F♯ Minor, op. 11 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Pastorale

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Ruralia Hungarica, op. 32a no. 6

Franz SCHUBERT–Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Valses nobles

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Cascades, op. 41 no. 4

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Scherzino, op. 41 no. 2

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 14). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.014

LP: [BRAHMS, op. 117/1; CHOPIN, op. 36, op. 56/2; DOHNÁNYI, Pastorale] Hungaroton, LPX 12085–86 (p1979, ø 30 cm)

CD: [BRAHMS, op. 117/1; CHOPIN op. 36, op. 56/2; DOHNÁNYI, Pastorale] Hungaroton, HCD 12085 (p1993)

CD: [BACH] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

May 7, 1955, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Joseph HAYDN, Die Schöpfung, Hob. XXI:2

Esther NOBLE (S), Helen Ledford THOMAS (S), Alexander LEWIS (T), David NOBLE (Bar), George MUNS (BBar), Ohio University Orchestra, Ohio University Chorus, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 15/1–2). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.015/1–2

Note on the CD cover: “deficient and incomplete recording.”

May 10, 1955, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Johannes BRAHMS, Cello Sonata no. 1 in E Minor, op. 38

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Cello Sonata in C Major, op. 102 no. 1

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Sonata for Violoncello and Piano, op. 8

Maurice EISENBERG (vcl.); Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 16). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.016

CD: [BRAHMS, mov. 1; DOHNÁNYI, movs. 3–4] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

November 16, 1955, Madison, University of Wisconsin, concert recording

“Romanticism in Beethoven's Sonatas,” lecture recital

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in D Minor, op. 31 no. 2, mov. 1

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in A Major, op. 101, mov. 1

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in E Major, op. 109

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Burletta, op. 44 no. 1

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Nocturne, op. 44 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Pastorale

Franz SCHUBERT–Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Valses nobles

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Scherzino, op. 41 no. 2

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 17). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.017

LP: [BEETHOVEN, op. 101] Hungaroton, LPX 12085–86 (p1979, ø 30 cm)

CD: [BEETHOVEN, op. 109] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

November 20, 1955, Madison, University of Wisconsin, concert recording

Dohnányi Festival Concert

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Piano Concerto no. 2 in B Minor, op. 42

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); University of Wisconsin Orchestra; Richard CHURCH (cond.)

The recording also includes:

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Symphonic Minutes, op. 36

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, American Rhapsody, op. 47

University of Wisconsin Orchestra; Richard CHURCH (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 18). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.018

January 1, 1956, [unknown location, USA], private recording

Elena de HELLEBRANDT, Lake Balaton (two recordings)

Elena de HELLEBRANDT, Love Is Love (two recordings)

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (voice, pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 19). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.019

March 1, 1956, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

FSU Repertory Class

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Diabelli Variations, op. 120

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 20). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.020

LP: Rarissima 18 (p[?], ø [?]). The disc was issued in 10 copies.

March 10, 1956, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

FSU Faculty Recital

Johannes BRAHMS, Sonata for Two Pianos in F Minor, op. 34b

Johannes BRAHMS, Variations on a Theme by Haydn, op. 56b

Johannes BRAHMS, Liebeslieder-Walzer, op. 52

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Edward KILÉNYI Jr. (pno.); Edith KAMP (S); Phillis PEKALB (A), Walter JAMES (T), Robert FARRALL (B)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 21). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.021

April 15, 1956, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, 32 Variations, WoO. 80

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in C♯ Minor, op. 27 no. 2

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Piano Sonata in A Major, K. 331

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Six Piano Pieces, op. 41

Frédéric CHOPIN, Nocturne in B Major, op. 62 no. 1

Franz LISZT, Consolations no. 3 in D♭ Major, LW A111b, no. 3

Franz SCHUBERT–Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Valses nobles

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: [BEETHOVEN, MOZART, DOHNÁNYI] MZA (DAT 22). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.022

LP: [MOZART, BEETHOVEN, op. 27 no. 2, CHOPIN, LISZT, SCHUBERT–DOHNÁNYI] Hungaroton, LPX 12085–86 (p1979, ø 30 cm)

CD: [MOZART; BEETHOVEN, op. 27 no. 2; CHOPIN, LISZT, SCHUBERT–DOHNÁNYI] Hungaroton, HCD 12085 (p1993)

CD: [CHOPIN, LISZT] appendix to the book: Franz LISZT, Chopin, transl. by Ottilia WASS, notes by Alex SZILASI (Budapest: Gondolat, 2010).

CD: [LISZT] Hungaroton HCD 32704 (p2011).

April 22, 1956, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Piano Concerto in E♭ Major, K. 271 (cadenzas: Ernő DOHNÁNYI)

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Piano Concerto in C Major, K. 503 (cadenzas: Ernő DOHNÁNYI)

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Ohio University Orchestra; Karl AHRENDT (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 23). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.023

July 3, 1956, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

FSU Faculty Recital

Johannes BRAHMS, Trio for Clarinet, Violoncello and Piano in A Minor, op. 114

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Trio for Piano, Clarinet and Violoncello in B♭ Major, op. 11

Johannes BRAHMS, Sonata for Clarinet and Piano in F Minor, op. 120 no. 1

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Harry SCHMIDT (clar.); Owen SELLERS (vcl.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 24). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.024

August 19, 1956, Edinburgh, concert recording

Edinburgh International Festival (BBC Broadcast)

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Intermezzo, op. 2 no. 3

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Capriccio, op. 23 no. 3

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Pastorale

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Ruralia Hungarica, op. 32a no. 6

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Rhapsody in F♯ Minor, op. 11 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Variations on a Hungarian Folksong, op. 29 (test recording and concert recording)

Lacquer disc.

Source: British Library, Leech collection 1LL0009466, 1LL0009464.

LP: [op. 11 no. 2] Hungaroton, LPX 12085–86 (p1979, ø 30 cm). Date and venue are mistakenly given as “BBC London, October 1956.”

CD: [op. 11 no. 2] Hungaroton, HCD 12085 (p1993). Date and venue are mistakenly given as “BBC London, October 1956.”

CD: [op. 11 no. 2, op. 23 no. 3, op. 29 (concert recording), op. 32a no. 6, Pastorale] Testament SBT2 1505 (p2014)

In the documents of the Dohnányi album of Hungaroton, the recording of the Rhapsody in F♯ Minor is credited as “BBC London, October 1956.” This is definitely incorrect. On August 13, 1956 Ernő Dohnányi and his wife arrived in Edinburgh, where Dohnányi gave several concerts. From August 27 to September 13, 1956, they were in London, where Dohnányi made gramophone recordings for HMV almost every day, so it is unlikely that any radio recordings were made during these days. Nor do his wife's diaries contain any evidence of radio recordings. They left England for America on September 13, 1956. Therefore, Dohnányi could not have performed in London in October 1956. An empirical comparison of the Hungaroton LP and the Testament CD recordings leads to the conclusion that the two recordings are identical, i. e. the Hungaroton recording was made at the Edinburgh Festival.

August 26, 1956, Edinburgh, concert recording

Edinburgh International Festival

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Sonata for Piano and Violin in A Major, K. 526

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Sonata for Piano and Violin, op. 21

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Six Piano Pieces, op. 41

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Ruralia Hungarica, op. 32c

Alfred CAMPOLI (vn.); Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Source: MR A-132433. Copied to: MZA (MR CD4). MZA-DE-DA 4.027

LP: BBC Transcription Disc 89646 (ø [?])

November 12, 1956, Orange, NJ, concert recording

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Concerto in C Major, op. 15 (cadenzas: Ernő DOHNÁNYI)

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Variations on a Nursery Song, op. 25

Franz SCHUBERT–Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Valses nobles

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Cascades, op. 41 no. 4

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); New Jersey Symphony Orchestra; Samuel ANTEK (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 25). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.025

March 1957, Athens, OH, private recordings of a rehearsal

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Sonata for Piano and Violin, op. 21

Christine AHRENDT (vn.); Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Piano Quintet in C Minor, op. 1 (excerpts)

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Christine AHRENDT (vn.); Karl AHRENDT (vn.); Sally COMIN (vla.); Leighton CONKLING (vcl.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (OSU CD-2). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.045. On MZA (OSU CD-4), MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.047, the same recording of the rehearsal of the Violin Sonata is available, but the end of the first movement was erased. MZA (OSU CD-5), MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.048, contains the same recording of the rehearsal of the Piano Quintet, with better sound quality.

March 31, 1957, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Sonata for Violoncello and Piano, op. 8

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Sonata for Piano and Violin, op. 21

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Piano Quintet in C Minor, op. 1

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Leighton CONKLING (vcl., op. 1 and 8); Christine AHRENDT (vn., op. 1 and 21); Karl AHRENDT (vn., op. 1); Sally COMIN (vla.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 27). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.027

Source: [DOHNÁNYI, op. 21] MZA (OSU CD-5). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.048

CD: [DOHNÁNYI, op. 1, movs. 1 and 2] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

November 15, 1957, Minneapolis, Cyrus Northrop Auditorium, USA, concert recording

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Piano Concerto in C Major, K. 503 (cadenza: Ernő DOHNÁNYI)

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Minneapolis Symphony; DORÁTI Antal (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD [?]

Source: MZA-DE-DA 4.104

The online catalog of The British Library lists this sound recording as “FSU DAT,” however, the FSU DAT collection does not have the recording.

January 13, 1958, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Variations on a Nursery Song, op. 25

Előadó: Catherine SMITH (pno.), FSU Symphony Orchestra, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 29). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.029

January 24, 1958, Tallahassee, FL, private recording in the home of Ernő Dohnányi

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Sonata for Piano and Violin in B♭ Major, K. 454

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Violin Sonata in F Major, op. 24

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Sonata for Piano and Violin, op. 21

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Ede ZATHURECZKY (vn.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 30/1). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.030/1

LP: [BEETHOVEN] Rarissima 4 (p[?], ø [?]). The date is given as 1959.

CD: [BEETHOVEN] Dis PCCD 20185–86 (p2000s). Reissue of the Rarissima LP.

CD: [DOHNÁNYI, mov. 2] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

January 25, 1958, Tallahassee, FL, private recording in the home of Ernő Dohnányi

César FRANCK, Violin Sonata in A Major

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Sonata for Piano and Violin in G Major, K. 301/293a

Robert SCHUMANN, Sonata no. 2 for Violin and Piano in D Minor, op. 121

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Ede ZATHURECZKY (vn.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 31/1). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.031/1

LP: [SCHUMANN] LP: Rarissima 4 (p[?], ø [?]). The date is given as 1959.

CD: [SCHUMANN] Dis PCCD 20185–86 (p2000s). Reissue of the Rarissima LP.

CD: [SCHUMANN, mov. 1] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

January 29, 1958, Tallahassee, FL, private recording in the home of Ernő Dohnányi

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Sonata for Piano and Violin in B♭ Major, K. 378

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Violin Sonata in C Minor, op. 30 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Sonata for Piano and Violin, op. 21

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Ede ZATHURECZKY (vn.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 30/2). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.030/2

It is possible that the recording of the Mozart sonata was made on January 24.

January 29, 1958, Tallahassee, FL, private recording in the home of Ernő Dohnányi

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Violin Sonata in A Major, op. 47

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Violin Sonata in G Major, op. 30 no. 3

Wolfgang Amadé MOZART, Sonata for Piano and Violin in E Minor, K. 304

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Ede ZATHURECZKY (vn.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 31/2). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.031/2

LP: Rarissima 4 (p[?], ø [?]). The date is given as 1959.

CD: Dis PCCD 20185–86 (p2000s). Reissue of the Rarissima LP.

CD: [BEETHOVEN, op. 47, mov. 1] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

February 20, 1958, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

Inaugural Program

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Piano Sextet in C Major, op. 37

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Robert SEDORE (vn.), Eugene CRABB (vla.), Owen SELLERS (vcl.), Harry SCHMIDT (clar.), Joseph WHITE (horn)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 32). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.032

CD: [movs. 3 and 4] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

April 15, 1958, Athens, OH, Ohio University, radio broadcast of a concert

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in C Minor, op. 13

Frédéric CHOPIN, Nocturne in B Major, op. 62 no. 1

Frédéric CHOPIN, Scherzo in C♯ Minor, op. 39

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Suite in Olden Style, op. 24 no. 4: Sarabande

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Suite in Olden Style, op. 24 no. 5: Menuet

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Pavane with Variations, op. 17 no. 3

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Capriccio, op. 23, no. 3

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Ruralia Hungarica, op. 32a no. 6

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Cascades, op. 41 no. 4

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 33). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.033

LP: [BEETHOVEN] Hungaroton, LPX 12085–86 (p1979, ø 30 cm)

April 27, 1958, Athens, OH, Ohio University, radio broadcast of a concert

Johannes BRAHMS, Alto Rhapsody, op. 53

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Stabat Mater, op. 46

Anton BRUCKNER, Te Deum

Marlene BUMGARDNER (voice); Olive FREDERICKS (voice); Patricia SOHLES (voice); Ohio University Chorus; Ohio University Orchestra; Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 34). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.034

CD: [DOHNÁNYI excerpts] Rózsavölgyi és Társa, RÉTCD 089 (p2017)

The recordings are fragmentary.

January 12, 1959, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Concerto in E♭ Major, op. 73

Joseph RUNNING (pno.), FSU Symphony Orchestra, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 35). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.035

March 24, 1959, Tallahassee, FL, Florida State University, concert recording

Faculty Recital

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in G Major, op. 31 no. 1

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Six Variations, op. 76

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Cascades, op. 41 no. 4

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 36). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.036

CD: [BEETHOVEN, op. 31 no. 1] Testament, SBT2 1505 (p2014). The date is mistakenly given as March 1, 1959.

April 19, 1959, Athens, OH, Ohio State University, concert recording

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Piano Sonata in G Major, op. 31 no. 1

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN, Six Variations, op. 76

Franz SCHUBERT, Piano Sonata in G Major, op. 78

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Marsch, op. 17 no. 1

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Cascades, op. 41 no. 4

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Scherzino, op. 41 no. 2

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: [BEETHOVEN] MZA (DAT 37/1–2). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.037/1–2

Source: [SCHUBERT; DOHNÁNYI, op. 17 no. 1, op. 41 no. 2, op. 41 no. 4] MZA (DAT 40). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.040

LP: [BEETHOVEN, op. 31 no. 1; SCHUBERT] BBC Radio Enterprises, REGL 4M [DOHNÁNYI, His Last Recital] (LP, p1967)²³¹

LP: [DOHNÁNYI, op. 17 no. 1, op. 41 no. 4] Hungaroton, LPX 12085–86 (p1979, ø 30 cm)

CD: [DOHNÁNYI, op. 17 no. 1] Hungaroton, HCD 12085 (p1993)

CD: [SCHUBERT, DOHNÁNYI] Testament, SBT2 1505 (p2014). The date is mistakenly given as March 1, 1959, Tallahassee.

April 26, 1959, Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Johannes BRAHMS, Piano Concerto in B♭ Major, op. 83

Johannes BRAHMS, Symphony no. 2 in D Major, op. 73

Eugene JENNINGS (pno.); Ohio University Symphony; Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 38/1–2). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.038/1–2

October 22, 1959, Atlanta, concert recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Variations on a Nursery Song, op. 25

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Suite in F♯ Minor, op. 19

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Atlanta Symphony; Henry SOPKIN (cond.) [op. 25]

Atlanta Symphony; Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.) [op. 19]

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 39). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.039

[unknown date], [unknown location], concert recording

Franz SCHUBERT, Military March in D Major, D. 733, no. 1

Franz SCHUBERT, Characteristic March in C Major, D. 968b, no. 1

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.); Edward KILÉNYI Jr. (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (DAT 40). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.040

[unknown date], Athens, OH, Ohio University, concert recording

Recorded at the Bakers

Johannes BRAHMS, Violin Sonata in G Major, op. 78

Frédéric CHOPIN, Impromptu in A♭ Major, op. 29

Frédéric CHOPIN, Nocturne in F♯, op. 15 no. 2

Christine AHRENDT (vn.) [BRAHMS]; Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (OSU CD-1). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.044

[unknown date], Athens, OH, Ohio University [?], concert recording

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Nocturne, op. 44 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Gavotte and Musette

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Capriccio in B Minor, op. 2 no. 4

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Ruralia Hungarica, op. 32a no. 6

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Scherzino, op. 41 no. 2

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno.)

Tape transferred to DAT and CD

Source: MZA (OSU CD-6). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.049

[unknown date], [unknown location], concert recording

Frédéric CHOPIN, Berceuse, op. 57

Frédéric CHOPIN, Impromptu in A♭ Major, op. 29

Frédéric CHOPIN, Scherzo in C♯ Minor, op. 39

Léo DELIBES–Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Waltz from Naîla

Johann STRAUSS Jr.–Adolf SCHULZ-EVLER, Arabesken über Themen des Walzers An den schönen blauen Donau (excerpt)

Source: MZA (DAT 40). MZA-DE-Ta-AV 2.040

Although this recording was preserved in the Dohnányi Collection at Florida State University, some of the repertoire is not typical of Dohnányi. Of his own transcriptions of Delibes, he played mostly the Coppélia waltz in both recordings and concerts, and he is not known to have ever performed Schulz-Evler's Strauss paraphrase. It cannot be ruled out that the recording was not made by him but possibly by Edward Kilényi Jr. who made a recording of the Naîla waltz during Dohnányi's lifetime.

[unknown date], [unknown location], USA, private recordings

9 improvisations on piano

Tape transferred to CD

Source: MZA MR CD 7

The circumstances of this recording are unknown. Judging by the background noise, the surviving audio recordings were presumably transferred from a tape that was used several times. The music of two improvised fugues is identical, but one of them has many uncertainties and miscues. On the basis of the information currently available to the research, it cannot be proved beyond doubt that Dohnányi is indeed playing the piano on these recordings.

In compiling the discography, I have used a variety of sources, including record dealer catalogs. These often include incomplete data sets and, due to the lack of availability of the original medium, it was not always possible to identify exactly which recordings were included on an advertized disc. In order to make the data as complete as possible, I list below the details of the LP and CD compilations on which additional Dohnányi recordings are to be found:

Allegro AL 39 (LP, p[?] ø [?]) (transfers of piano rolls)

ASCO A 119 (LP, p[?] ø [?]) [Great Pianists] (transfers of piano rolls)

Allegro LEG 9021 (LP, p[?] ø [?]) (transfers of piano rolls)

Documents 291398 [Creators – Composers Playing Their Own Works at the Piano, Vol. 8] (CD, p[?]) (Ernő Dohnányi: Capriccio, op. 2 no. 4, Ruralia Hungarica, op. 32 no. 6, Canzonetta, op. 41 no. 3, Cascades, op. 41 no. 4, Ländler, op. 41 no. 5, Burletta, op. 44 no. 1)

Eurodisc 30249 (LP, p[?] ø [?]) [Hungarian Rhapsodies by Liszt]

Melodiya D 011423–011426 (LP, p1963, ø [?]) [Выдающиеся Пианисты Прошлого/Outstanding Pianists of the Past] [a Strauss–Dohnányi transcription]. Further releases of this disc: Akkord D 011423–011428 (LP, p1963, ø [?]); Aprelevsky Zavod 33D-011423–011426 (LP, p1963, ø [?]); Melodiya 33D-011423–011428 (LP, p1964, ø [?])

Royale 1402 (LP, p[?] ø [?]) [An Hour of the Master Pianists] (DOHNÁNYI, Winterreigen, op. 13 no. 2, Marsch der lustigen Brüder)²³²

Rádiófónia MRCD 002 [STRAUSS–DOHNÁNYI, Schatzwalzer and BERLIOZ, Rákóczi March] (CD, p1993)

TAP 14068 (LP, p[?]) [Great Pianists of the 19–20^th Centuries] (transfers of piano rolls)

Appendix: audiovisual recordings

Compiled by Anna LASKAI and Ferenc János SZABÓ

October 1935, Budapest

Hector BERLIOZ, Rákóczi March

Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Excerpt of the movie Halló, Budapest! (Director: László Vajda). The movie survives in fragments.

January 1940, Budapest, Royal Hungarian Opera

Béla BARTÓK, Two Pictures, op. 10 no. 2: Village Dance (fragments)

Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Hungarian World News, 830 (January 1940). <https://filmhiradokonline.hu/watch.php?id=3629>

July 1943, Budapest, Hungarian Radio

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Symphonic Minutes, op. 36, mov. 5: Rondo (fragments)

Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra [?], Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Hungarian World News, 1014 (July 1943). Dohnányi Concert at the Radio on the 66^th Birthday of the Artist. <https://filmhiradokonline.hu/watch.php?id=5104>

October 1943, Budapest, Magyar Művelődés Háza [House of Hungarian Culture]

Franz LISZT, Les Préludes (fragment)

Orchestra of the Hungarian Radio, Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Hungarian World News, 1025 (October 1943). <https://filmhiradokonline.hu/watch.php?id=5189>

July 1944, Budapest, Music Academy

Béni EGRESSY, Szózat

Unidentified Choir, Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra [?], Ernő DOHNÁNYI (cond.)

Hungarian World News, 1066 (July 1944). <https://filmhiradokonline.hu/watch.php?id=5774>

[unknown date, before 1945], Budapest, different venues

Ernő DOHNÁNYI, Variations on a Nursery Song, op. 25 (excerpts)

Ernő DOHNÁNYI (pno., cond.), unidentified orchestra

Short clip, in which Dohnányi is walking in his garden, playing the piano, teaching at the Music Academy and conducting an orchestra.

National Film Institute, Clip Catalog, MÜV 23

1957, Tallahassee, FL, and perhaps also Jacksonville, FL

We know of a television programme recorded in 1957. The programme featured Dohnányi playing his own compositions.

English translation by Katalin AVAR