Suffering from a kind of mini-flu, I spent the weekend listening to Schubert, mainly centred on some CDs of Robert Goldsand I had received, plus a re-issue of the famous Wiener Oktett recordings from the early 1950s (Octet, Trout, plus the Mendelssohn Octet). Goldsand turns out to be a good, classical pianist from the Austrian school. I liked his playing, but when I put on Edwin Fischer playing the Schubert Impromptus immediately after Goldsand, I noticed the difference. Fischer just sounded "right" and natural, and less contrived; his tempi also sounded "correct" (whatever that might mean).

And the Wiener Oktett in Schubert (and Mendelssohn) also sounded "right". These classic performances will now be the ones I turn to when I want to hear Schubert (which seems to be more and more often these days; I love the restless tonality and modulation in his music).