Lupu, Pires and Schubert

A correspondent chides me gently for seemingly loving every music recording I listen to. Not true actually; it's just that I usually gloss over the recordings that leave me cold or indifferent. It often seems a bit unfair to criticise hard-working professional musicians on the grounds I didn't like their results.

Recently I purchased two recordings of one of my primary works: Schubert's B flat major sonata D 960. I am now the proud possessor of 17 different versions of this incredible and multi-faceted piano sonata. I bought a new version by Klara Würtz, a pianist I much admired in her duo playing with Kristof Barati in the Beethoven and Brahms violin & piano sonatas. Her performance of the Schubert was good, but competition is very stiff in this work, and this OK performance is not one I'll be returning to often. A little disappointed, I decided to acquire the famous 1991 recording by the almost mythical Radu Lupu, a performance very highly praised by many. I listened to it once, and was puzzled that, for once, Schubert's music was not gripping me as usual. So I pressed replay and listened again. Still no buzz. So I put on the recent recording by Maria Pires ... and was back in the familiar and wonderful world of Schubert's last sonata. After nearly two hours of the B flat major sonata played three times in succession, my neighbours must have been becoming agitated.

When one listens to Lupu's phenomenal playing in the sonata, it's mainly about Lupu and less about Schubert. Pires plays the music simply, doubtless with her art concealing art. With the Pires performance, one listens to Schubert. With the Lupu performance, one listens to Lupu. I am becoming a real fan of Pires's piano playing.