Paganini was already 46 when he first left his native Italy for a series of concerts throughout Europe. The effect of his playing on the younger generation of composers was profound and lasting, most notably on Berlioz, Schumann and Liszt. Among the works that made such a impression were his 24 Caprices, Op 1, for solo violin. Liszt set about writing a set of studies using Paganini’s material with the specific purpose of emulating on the piano the equivalent level of technical difficulty (and which, he hoped, would have a similar effect on the audience). The result was the Etudes d’exécution transcendante d’après Paganini, written between 1838 and 1840, using six of Paganini’s Caprices and ‘La campanella’, the rondo theme from the Second Violin Concerto in B minor.

These, with the alternative versions Liszt wrote of Etudes Nos 1, 4 and 5, are not often recorded for the very good reason that they are nothing like as effective as the (slightly) easier revised versions Liszt prepared in 1851. Even these do not crop up as a set that often (Gary Graffman’s RCA account from 1959 and Marc-André Hamelin’s from 2002 remain personal favourites), though of course ‘La campanella’ (No 3) is ubiquitous.

Furthermore, there is only one other recording I know that couples both versions of the two sets of Etudes: Vol 48 of Leslie Howard’s complete solo piano music of Liszt. Fine as that is (recorded in 1997 at Potton Hall) and enhanced by Howard’s superior booklet, on balance the scales just tip in favour of the newcomer. Goran Filipec (b1981 in Rijeka, Croatia) is a new name to me but in this repertoire at any rate he is the real deal. With a technique that makes you forget just how exacting these pieces are to play, Filipec not only generates the thrill of a live performance but does so with a disarming swagger and playfulness. Indeed, he nearly convinced me that the Carnaval of Venice variations are not as bad as they really are. Filipec is also, I note, the producer of the disc, one which can sit happily alongside those of Graffman and Hamelin.