The St. Leodegar Court Church in Lucerne is no ordinary concert hall. Its historic architecture lends sounds a special depth and breadth—and in the late hours of the night, when the city falls silent, this sacred space reveals its full acoustic potential. It was precisely in this silence that the recordings for “Sacred Impressions” were made: in a minimalist style, without digital manipulation, within the natural acoustics of the church interior.

The program brings together three works that offer different approaches to sonic density. Ravel’s “Gaspard de la nuit” is considered one of the most demanding piano works in the repertoire—a series of tone poems based on texts by Aloysius Bertrand, whose technical complexity mirrors their emotional ambiguity. Liszt’s Sonata in B minor is a monumental one-movement work that challenges the pianist for nearly thirty minutes and, with its open form, continues to invite a wide variety of interpretations to this day. Finally, Debussy’s “Images” (Book 1) explores sound at the limits of what can be represented: ethereal, colorful, and almost intangible.

Dmitry Demyashkin, who lives in Switzerland and teaches at the Zurich University of the Arts, combines the Russian school tradition with the sound culture of Western European modernism. The recording is being released on the Swiss label Line-In Spatial Records as a Blu-ray Audio with CD, in a cardboard slipcase with a trilingual booklet (English, German, French). Producer Mirjam Rogger and sound engineer Lasse Nipkow have captured the natural spatial sound of the Hofkirche in Dolby Atmos, Auro-3D, 5.1 DTS-HD MA, and high-resolution stereo.

Tracklist

Blu-ray Audio

1. Maurice Ravel: Gaspard de la nuit, M. 55 – I. Ondine
2. Maurice Ravel: Gaspard de la nuit, M. 55 – II. Le Gibet
3. Maurice Ravel: Gaspard de la nuit, M. 55 – III. Scarbo
4. Franz Liszt: Klaviersonate b-minor, S. 178
5. Claude Debussy: Images, 1re Série, L. 110 – I. Reflets dans l’eau
6. Claude Debussy: Images, 1re Série, L. 110 – II. Hommage à Rameau
7. Claude Debussy: Images, 1re Série, L. 110 – III. Mouvement

CD

1. Maurice Ravel: Gaspard de la nuit, M. 55 – I. Ondine
2. Maurice Ravel: Gaspard de la nuit, M. 55 – II. Le Gibet
3. Maurice Ravel: Gaspard de la nuit, M. 55 – III. Scarbo
4. Franz Liszt: Klaviersonate b-minor, S. 178
5. Claude Debussy: Images, 1re Série, L. 110 – I. Reflets dans l’eau
6. Claude Debussy: Images, 1re Série, L. 110 – II. Hommage à Rameau
7. Claude Debussy: Images, 1re Série, L. 110 – III. Mouvement