Schubert - 4 Impromptus D899 [Schiff] It seems a great shame that somehow room wasn't found for the complete 8 Impromptus on these discs, but it's wonderful to have four from Schiff, these are the companion pieces to the other 4 Impromtus i reviewed on another disc last year [10th May 2010], again it's a shame that i can't fuse them together, but playing them today makes me realize how very sublime and lyrically perfect these piano pieces are.
Andras Schiff is Hungarian, born in 1953, he recorded these Impromptus in 1990, the booklet cover photograph is of a wood, a clever picture of trunks of slim trees, very 'repetitive', and a lonely wilderness feeling.
Schubert's 8 Impromptus are my most favourite work of all time, the Alfred Brendel disc of these works resides at No1 in my all time list, here we have 4 of them from Andras Schiff, and as always, i marvel at the perfectness of each one, but one always stands out above the others, and this time it was the third, it's in G Flat Major, a beautiful and yet remotely used key with six flats, it must be hard to play, but yet so easy on the ear, and 'simple' to listen to, Schiff's recording sounds 'close', a bit boxy, he plays what i assume is a Beckstein piano, not as warm as a Steinway, which might go some way to explain the end product of the recording soundwise.
The third Impromptu of the set is extremely lyrical, it has a breathtaking rippling undercurrent played by the thumb and index finger of the right hand, and the main melody played by the little finger and the ring finger of the same hand, it goes up a little notch in intensity at [0:29], and especially at [0:55], where the rippling effect gets louder, and the left hand reaches deep into the bass for a dark and growling ripple [1:03], but it's right after where the two little right fingers play louder and intense, real depth here, and to balance things there's a wonderful resolution at [1:46], the piano plays softer and more soothing, and especially at [2:07], where there's such a consoling tone, truly beautiful, only for the louder intenseness to start all over again [2:17], and nice sweet treble notes too [2:48], the reprise of the opening is a magical moment [3:14], made all the more poignant from all that's gone before, the ending isn't sweet bliss, rather the left hand slowly dies into the bass, with a growling ripple which slows and quietens down to silence, a lovely ending, what a masterpiece, Schubert's a genius if he only wrote this one piece.
Here's Alfred Brendel playing the Third Impromptu on YouTube.
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